Danganronpa: Twisted Tragedy (SYOC)

by SilverMark16

[Sequel to Corrupted Hope] Eighteen of Hope's Peak's finest awake to find themselves stuck in an abandoned theme park, Piero's Playground, the joyous place in the world! However, behind the smiles and laughs is a deadly game of tears and tragedy starring a Killing Game hosted by the eccentric Stanczyk and his twisted partner, Monoyena.

32. House of 1000 Low Spirits (Part 7)

Chapter 3: House of 1000 Low Spirits (Deadly Life #1)

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Warning: This fic contains intense violence, lots of OFFENSIVE cursing (thanks Monoyena, you fucking asshole!), character death, gore and blood, sexual innuendos, and possible spoilers for the Danganronpa series. But hey, everyone lurking in this fandom has at least played the first Danganronpa so no need to worry much there! Right?

With that said, please enjoy!

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...

It's a world of laughter, a world of tears

It's a world of hopes and a world of fears

There's so much that we share that it's time we're aware

It's a small world after all

...

It was a small world, indeed.

Kazuki Nobukatsu agreed with that much. He kept himself hidden behind the stage, listening to the Tenshi Delight's children choir sing their merry song of hope and laughter. There was something about children when they go up on stage just to have fun and sing a song. Something about the innocence in their hope-filled eyes and joyous voices. The giggling and smiles they had as they sung their song warming the hearts of anyone who was listening. Warming the hearts of anyone who was watching and clapping their hands to the beat in support…

For once, Kazuki wished he could join the crowd not as Kazuki Nobukatsu, the Ultimate Philanthropist, but just as Kazuki. As a regular bystander who enjoyed the innocence of life itself and had little to fear. As someone who didn't have to worry about impending death or anything like that. As someone who just… wanted to live.

But instead, here he was, shrouded in the back like a scrooge.

Shrouded in the most secluded part of the stage, where the only people that would pass by were those that were due to appear onstage and a couple of stage managers.

No one else.

What a pathetic way to do this.

What a pathetic way to celebrate the fundraiser event that he himself was hosting.

What a pathetic way to celebrate his Happiest Day.

The Tenshi Delight's Orphanage was and has been on death's doors for nearly two decades now. It was truly God's work to see them up and running all this time. But with the lack of money going into their necessities, it was only a matter of time before the doors would be shut closed for good.

At least, that would be the case had Kazuki not intervened upon hearing their story.

The moment he caught wind of it, he reached out, and Nobukatsu Enterprises planned a charity event just to keep Tenshi's Delight up and running again.

The nuns thought it to be God's work.

The public saw it as a nice gesture.

But Kazuki… he did it for the good of his heart.

That's why, the more Kazuki thought about it, the more disappointed he was. In previous fundraisers, he'd be in the first seat onstage watching everyone with that happy smile over his face. Today, he wasn't. His decision to cower in the back and let the children share their love and hope in the world while he remained a recluse…

Just how could he claim to be the Man of the People if he can't even do the basics of good philanthropy?

Kazuki folded his hands together.

He lowered his head.

He closed his eyes.

And finally, he let out a sigh.

A pitiful sigh.

Just…

What kind of Man of the People was he anymore?

"Um…!"

Kazuki slowly opened his eyes and blinked.

When he raised his head, he turned to see a young girl dressed in what seemed to be a bird costume of some sort. It took a moment for him to figure out that she was one of the children that signed up to be the dancers for this event.

Right… some children signed up to sing, others signed up to perform and dance…

This girl was one of them.

Young. Sweet. Innocence in her eyes. Yet nervous to approach him. Like a lost kitten unsure whether to trust a human from picking her up and taking good care of her. Kazuki instinctively covered his neck and gave her a reassuring smile. Just something to tell her that it was okay to approach him.

"...Oh… Hello little Miss…" Kazuki smiled. "...Your group… it's… not here… Are you by chance… Lost…?"

The girl looked down, abashed.

Kazuki suspected she was still a little nervous being next to someone like him. He wanted to help. He really did. But the instructions he was given was to sit here and wait till the event was over. That was the condition in return for his insistence on attending this event. He opened his mouth to apologize but…

"Mm…!"

The girl quickly handed him something on the tips of her finger.

Kazuki blinked, confused.

Slowly, he reached for it and held it carefully in the palm of his hand. His eyes widened in surprise. It was beautiful. Innocent. He's seen hundreds of these in his lifetime but nothing was more special than being handed one by the very type of people he had promised himself to look after: an origami crane.

"Bird…!"

The girl stepped back and twiddled her fingers, nervously.

"...Wow…" Kazuki breathlessly stated, turning toward the girl in amazement. "...Did you… make this…?"

The girl simply nodded.

"...Hm… how beautiful…" Kazuki smiled. "You… are a very talented young lady… Thank you…"

The girl blushed.

"Yuyo! There you are!"

The girl swiftly turned and backed away even further from Kazuki.

He raised his eyebrow for a moment before noticing a nun march her way into the room. Kazuki recognized her as Sister Hitsuji, one of the head nuns at Tenshi's Delight. She was practically there since the orphanage first opened so in a sense, she was practically the one fighting tooth and nail in order to keep it open.

Admirable.

"I told you many times!" Sister Hitsuji scolded the young girl, Yuyo, disapprovingly. "You can't keep wandering off like this!"

Kazuki matched Yuyo's eyes, noting the shame in her eyes as she was being reprimanded. Like the eyes of a puppy…

"Ah… there's… no need to reprimand her…" Kazuki quickly spoke up.

Sister Hitsuji snapped her attention toward Kazuki, almost completely taken aback by the fact that there was someone else here. What's more, it was Kazuki Nobukatsu she was looking at! The surprise on her face was completely warranted. She cleared her throat and kept Yuyo by her side.

"Mister Nobukatsu!" Sister Hitsuji noted. "I apologize. I didn't see you there. I… I hope our little Yuyo hasn't been causing you too much trouble!"

"Haha… nonsense…" Kazuki smiled. "...The child was simply… showing me something she had made…"

He held up the origami crane as proof.

Slick save.

He watched as Yuyo's face brightened and Sister Hitsuji's distressed yet strict expression softened. With a calming sigh, the head nun shared a smile, resting her eyes on the beautiful origami crane. Sister Hitsuji placed both her hands over Yuyo's shoulder and hugged her tightly, something the young girl seemed to enjoy comfortably.

"That's our Yuyo," Sister Hitsuji simply said, a proud smile slowly forming over her face. "An especially talented young girl. You know, the other sisters think that in time, she might just be an up-and-coming Ultimate."

The head nun turned toward Kazuki.

"Just like you," Sister Hitsuji continued.

Kazuki shifted uncomfortably the moment he heard that. But he still kept a smile over his face. He turned toward Yuyo, noticing the hope in her eyes. Now he knew why she approached him. She wasn't lost or anything like that. She actively sought him out. She actively wanted to meet him. Because she knew she was just like him.

An Ultimate.

The new generation looks up to the old.

And after being the Ultimate Philanthropist for years, it was his job now to inspire the new. At least, that's what it meant to be an Ultimate anyway. It was a pressure that Kazuki was used to and frankly, it came with its own set of rewards.

But for every up, there is always a down.

And Kazuki's down was what was hidden underneath every layer of clothing he wore…

"I'm… not sure life as an Ultimate… would even be all that… amazing…" Kazuki closed his eyes.

"Oh, now don't you say that Mister Nobukatsu," Sister Hitsuji lightly scolded. "We at Tenshi's Delight cannot thank you enough for your kind donation of 10 million. It was God's will to send you our way as our guardian angel."

She bowed her head again.

Similarly, Yuyo did the same.

"Truly, God's perfect angel," Sister Hitsuji repeated.

Perfect angel?

No angel is perfect. Some can lose their wings and fall from grace. Just like that very famous one. Lucifer. And Kazuki knew he was one bad day to becoming Lucifer. He lowered his head, allowing Sister's Hitsuji's words to repeat over and over again in his mind. He wanted to pointed out that Sister Hitsuji may be mistaken about him, but how could he?

Especially in front of young little hopeful Yuyo…

"Oh," Sister Hitsuji listened closely to the children nearly finishing their merry tune. "It's almost time!"

She turned to Yuyo.

"Quickly now, Yuyo," she began to usher the little girl toward a different part of the stage. "You don't want to miss your entrance with the other kids!"

Yuyo wordlessly agreed.

Skipping ahead with that innocent look on her face, the little Yuyo ran off. Then, Sister Hitsuji turned back to Kazuki and gave him one final bow. Gratitude was expressed enough but the head nun couldn't help it.

"I must go," Sister Hitsuji smiled. "Once again, God bless you for everything, Mister Nobukatsu! God bless you!"

Sister Hitsuji turned around—

"Before you leave… Sister…" Kazuki called out. "Could… I ask a question…?"

He raised his head, noting the head nun's look of curiosity over her face. An expression that contrasted the pain and conflict over his…

"Well, of course, Mister Nobukatsu," Sister Hitsuji bowed. "What is it?"

"...Do you… believe that me being this… Ultimate Philanthropist… was really God's will?" Kazuki asked.

Sister Hitsuji seemed to only smile in amusement.

"God has a plan for all of his children," she answered. "He assigns you a role and paves a path for you to follow. Whether you choose to stray from that path or not; that's entirely your choice."

A role.

His role.

Ultimate Philanthropist.

"In the end, having you as an Ultimate Philanthropist is nothing more than another one of God's miracles," Sister Hitsuji continued. "And God's miracles works in wondrous ways. You understand, don't you?"

Kazuki slowly held the origami crane that Yuyo. With a single glance, he could see just what his role as the Ultimate Philanthropist meant to others. He held it close to his heart, making sure to gently treat it like it was an actual baby crane. Holding it with affectionate love and care, thinking of nothing more other than what else he could do to make this event more… meaningful to Tenshi's Delight.

"I… understand…" Kazuki simply said.

Sister Hitsuji did nothing but bow. With a sweet smile on her face, the head nun walked off, leaving him alone behind the stage.

Leaving him alone with nothing but that origami crane.

The crane made by Yuyo.

His mind thinking of only Sister Hitsuji's words…

Him as the Ultimate Philanthropist is nothing more than another one of God's miracles.

But… was that really the path that God had planned for him…?

...

There is just one moon and one golden sun

And a smile means friendship to everyone

Though the mountains divide

And the oceans are wide

It's a small world after all

...

Tai Mamoru held his side of the perimeter well.

Hands clasped together, sunglasses over his eyes, and finally, an earpiece securely tucked in gave him the complete bodyguard skillset. He kept a watchful eye, making sure everyone else was holding their stations.

There was in the far right corner behind the audience that had come to watch the event.

There was another in the far left.

Five more were implanted amongst the crowd in case anyone decided to be cheeky.

A couple of snipers in nearby windows ready to fire if need be.

And two more by the bottom of the stage where he was at.

With this much security, anyone could've mistaken them for the USA's Secret Service or something as silly as them. But their disguised security team was just a front. Today was a special case. Even though the audience wouldn't know it themselves, Kazuki Nobukatsu was indeed attending the event. It was through Kazuki's insistence of being here that got him a backstage pass.

The only downside was that the guy had to stay backstage.

Away from the children whose orphanage he was endorsing.

Away from the sight of the children who were having fun.

Away from the public eye.

And his job along with the others was to act as security guards so as to not draw any attention to Kazuki's presence.

Tai has worked with Nobukatsu Enterprises for years now. Every attack Kazuki had gotten himself in, he's seen it all. Every time Kazuki gets shot or stabbed or sliced, the man always stands back up. And every time it happened, Tai was always there to help keep him alive. Heck, Kazuki's practically gotten into so much trouble that Tai definitely ended up on the guy's speed dial.

But the more Kazuki got on the receiving end of those bastards hired to try to kill this guy, the less the guy would actually come out to attend events like these anymore. So in a way…

Today was a nice change of pace.

Though his back was turned from the actual stage, Tai could see just how much fun everyone was having. He could hear the crowd cheering and singing along. He could see a handful of people recording everything via phones. He could feel the excitement leak through the giggling children as they sang and danced.

It truly was a momentous occasion to celebrate for Nobukatsu Enterprises…

...

It's a small world after all

It's a small world after all

It's a small world after all

It's a small world after all

...

"Is that Mister Nobukatsu? It is! It's Mister Nobukatsu!"

As the music came to a close and the children of Tenshi's Delight finished their grand performance, Tai could see the excitement raise to a higher level than ever before. It didn't take long for him to realize what was going on. He quickly placed his finger over his earpiece. He scanned the different marked perimeters…

…Everyone on the team looked just as confused as he was.

"Eagle, come in, Eagle," Tai spoke up. "Please tell me Mister Nobukatsu isn't on stage right now."

Pause.

"...He is…" his team member responded.

Kazuki Nobukatsu…!

That… idiot!

This… This wasn't part of the plan!

What was he thinking?!

"My good people…" came Kazuki's voice, echoing loudly amongst the crowd. "...Today… is a fortuitous day. As you may know… our beautiful country of Japan… is much like any country in the world… with its rich abundance of culture… and history…"

Tai wanted to move up on stage and escort Kazuki off immediately. He was never supposed to be up on that stage. The only thing that was supposed to happen was a performance shown off by a couple of rugrats and then a thank you speech from one of the head nuns. Kazuki Nobukatsu was never supposed to make a public appearance!

He knew the risks of what would happen!

"We… the Japanese people…" Kazuki continued. "...Are only second… behind Singappore's fantastic healthcare system… Mediocre… in comparison to Hong Kong's brilliant finances… And… the worst… when it comes to taking care of our children."

Tai needed to keep calm.

He scanned whatever he could in his line as sight, not bothering to listen to anything Kazuki was saying. His biggest concern was whether or not someone knew this would happen. Whether or not someone was planning to do it. Like all the other times that it was done to Kazuki in the past…

"...Of the 42,000 children who are not able to live with their birth parents in their own country…" Kazuki exclaimed. "36,000 live in orphanages…"

He scanned the crowd and continued.

"...We… have one of the lowest rates of foster care in the world…" Kazuki continued. "All of these children… with no home… and no experience… with the stable family lifestyle…"

Tai spotted something shining from one of the building windows.

"...It is through orphanages like Tenshi's Delight…" Kazuki explained. "...That a child born under our government… is able to have a chance at a healthy lifestyle… Which is why… I have decided to stand here now… and chosen to donate… an additional 20 million… to keep Tenshi's Delight's doors open… for at least the next three decades…"

The children and the nuns of Tenshi's Delight looked amongst themselves, shocked and surprised by what Kazuki had announced.

Then came the thunderous applause…

And the praises singing out Kazuki's name….

And the blinding lights from the media that captured the Ultimate Philanthropist's grim smile as he turned toward the children to the side…

Toward Yuyo, who could only look at her idol in admiration…

And the shining thing from the window that Tai spotted… it moved. And suddenly, Tai realized that what he had feared most was certainly going to come to pass. He turned toward Kazuki, noting just how unaware the Philanthropist was. The Ultimate Philanthropist who simply turned toward the right, gesturing toward the children on stage. Tai's eyes widened…

…and he dashed toward the stage.

"Now… give a round of applause for Tenshi's Deli—"

"GET DOWN, MISTER KAZUKI, GET DOWN!" Tai yelled.

BANG!

BANG!

BANG!

BANG!

He wasted no time in hopping onstage and tackling Kazuki down to the ground, shielding his body with his own.

But it was already too late.

He could hear Kazuki wincing in pain. Pain from the bullet that pierced his hip and the other that scraped his ear. Tai's body was covered with Kazuki's blood, but miraculously, he was still alive, fighting for his life. The other bodyguards had joined him in trying to put pressure on his wound…

"Prepare the limo! Hold the perimeter!"

"Medic! We need a medic! Quickly get the medic!"

"Ack… ack…" Kazuki winced in the pain he was all too familiar with.

"Mister Kazuki, don't speak," Tai instructed. "We got you. We got you now."

But Kazuki didn't care about that.

Instead, he had taken in all of the senses he was exhibiting at the moment. Aside from the streaking pain in his body from two burning bullets, Kazuki could hear the commotion erupting from the crowd and the children onstage. He tried to stabilize his breathing but his heart was pounding to an unbearable degree… as if it were pumping out as much blood as it could to keep himself stabilized.

He hated it.

Just once, he wanted a day where he could be free and happy and not have to worry about another assassination attempt on his life. Just once, he just wanted to be someone who could enjoy life to the fullest. He thought back to Sister Hitsuji's words and grimly looked up at the sky with disappointment.

Did… Did he really have to walk this path that God had apparently paved for him?

"Enemy sniper is down. I repeat. Enemy sniper is down."

"Copy that," Tai spoke into his ear piece. "Good work. Good work. Moving the Angel into the Carriage."

Quickly, the three bodyguards hoisted him up and escorted him off the stage.

And although Kazuki had to limp and do whatever he could to make sure his inability to move wasn't going to be too restrictive, the philanthropist was still allowed to take in the sights over the aftermath of what had happened.

The media… once supportive of his actions, now had a new story to tell to overshadow the old.

The crowd… once praising his generosity, now looked at him with concern and worry amidst silence.

The orphanage… once cheerful and happy and hopeful of the world they were in, were now terrified and unwilling to commit themselves to the same excitement they experienced before.

And Yuyo…

No…

…Yuyo was in Sister Hitsuji's arms, blood forming from who knows where. That was the moment Kazuki remembered that there had been four bullets that fired at the scene. Two went to him. The other, shot down the sniper that tried to kill him. And the last…

"A-Ack… N-No… No…" Kazuki's eyes trembled. "S-Save her first… Save her first… Save her first!"

He tried to move but the more he moved, the more pain he was in. He tried to fight the very people that were trying to save his life. Because why should they save his life? In the grand scale of things, he wasn't worth the trouble in this situation. A child was hurt and they were quite literally dragging him away from her.

"Sir, we have orders," Tai grimaced. "Come on. We need to go."

"Y-Yuyo… P-Please… S-Save her…" Kazuki's eyes trailed down toward the last thing he would see beside the little girl that had come to him out of admiration.

An origami crane, sprawled on the floor, covered in blood.

His origami crane…

Covered in his blood…

His hand reached out for it… but all he could do was get placed in his fancy limo and watch as the door closed on him. Watched as the limo pulled him away from the scene, his bodyguards joining him. Watched as he moved farther and farther away from the child he could've helped…

He pounded his fist against the sturdy bulletproof glass… and screamed out in anguish:

"G-GAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

...

...

...

"What were you thinking?"

Kazuki didn't say anything.

He sat on his hospital bed with nothing but the blankest of expressions on his face. The bullets were long removed from his body. The bandages were neatly wrapped around his injuries. The operation was a success. Yet, all Kazuki could do was turn toward the window, watching nothing but the sun setting on what was supposed to be a good day.

His Happiest Day.

Seated next to him was Hashida Nobukatsu, his hands clasped together with a nothing but a grimace over his face. Given how tired he looked, it was safe to assume that Kazuki's older brother had been sitting by his side for the entire day. But, usually when he did, he would be in tears… completely worried he would lose his brother.

That wasn't the case this time around.

Instead of tears, there was a look of emptiness in Hashida's eyes.

Wasn't hard for anyone to know why.

When this most recent assassination attempt was the 20th or 21st time it has happened— Hashida didn't know, he lost count after attempt 8 —one stops getting ready to mourn and starts wondering what the hell is really going on here.

"The company made that condition for you for a reason," Hashida explained, his frustrated tone kicking in. "You got to attend. You got to listen to the children sing and dance. The only thing asked of you was to not step out on stage. Because we all knew what would happen if you did. We all knew. I knew. They knew. You knew. And yet, you did it anyway. So, let me ask again. What were you thinking?"

Kazuki remained silent.

"ANSWER ME!" Hashida screamed.

He slammed his hand against Kazuki's hospital bed.

That was enough to make Kazuki turn his head toward Hashida, exposing his blank expression. But if Hashida looked closer, he would see that his blank expression was filling with that familiar pain everyone would soon remember him for…

"That child…" Kazuki quietly spoke. "Yuyo… How is she…?"

Now, it was Hashida's turn to go quiet.

He stood up and paced around the room. Kazuki knew that as the tell that whatever the answer was, it wasn't going to be good to hear. His mind went to the worst possible conclusion. He wanted to hope so desperately for it to not to be true but the only way to find out was by…

"Is she…?" Kazuki started to ask. "Did she…?"

Hashida's silence became his answer.

"...Oh God…" Kazuki placed his shaking hand over his forehead.

"Tenshi's Delight holds no ill will toward you for what happened," Hashida simply said. "If that's what you were worried about. The blame rests on the guy that fired that gun. Him and whoever hired that son of a bitch."

"...I just wanted… to make those children proud…" Kazuki quivered. "I just wanted… to show everyone… that even someone like me… someone who's been through so much… can fight adversity head-on… instead of hiding away… like a coward…"

The philanthropist slowly lowered his hand. His eyes glanced only to the palm. His mind thought only to that origami crane. His tears… never forming once. He's cried enough as it was. Slowly, he curled his fingers and tightened it all into a fist.

"Tell me… Hashida…" Kazuki's gaze darkened. "What use… is an Ultimate Philanthropist… if his very presence gets others hurt…?"

Hashida grimaced.

"Kazuki…" Hashida tried to remain calm. "Kazuki, for once… For once… For once in your life, can you not be so FUCKING SELFLESS?!"

Didn't work.

"You care too much for a bunch of people that you don't fucking know!" Hashida exclaimed. "How many times is it going to take you to learn that caring for these psychos is just going to get you hurt?!"

"What kind of Ultimate Philanthropist doesn't care for their own people…?" Kazuki simply asked.

"The smart fucking kind, Kazuki!" Hashida argued.

His brother stormed up to Kazuki's hospital bed and pulled off his blanket covers, exposing his frail and horrific-looking bare body. The collection of bulletholes and stab wounds he had garnered over the years now acting as nothing but painful memories of each and every near-death encounter he had.

"Look at yourself!" Hashida exclaimed. "Just look at what these fucking people did to you! Look at what these animals did… to my brother!"

A shuddering breath escaped Kazuki's lips.

"Why can't you be selfish for once in your life, huh?!" Hashida yelled. "Why can't you just care about your own wellbeing… for once in your FUCKING LIFE?!"

His voice started to crack.

"Do you really think that your life isn't worth more than all the other fucking trash in the world?!" Hashida started to cry. "That it doesn't kill me inside every time I see you sleeping in this fucking bed?! Waiting to see if you'll make it… or if you'll…"

He trailed off, not wanting to finish the thought.

"...Brother…" Kazuki looked down. "...What… are you trying to say…?"

"I can't… I can't do this anymore, man…" tears streamed down Hashida's face. "I just can't. You may be the most patient person on the planet, but I'm not. I can't keep waiting. And I can't keep watching my brother get put into the ICU day after day after day."

"...Hashida…" Kazuki grimly let out. "You don't mean…"

"I'm sorry Kazuki…" Hashida simply said, sitting down on his chair and grasping his brother's hand. "...But it's time…"

Kazuki knew what was coming.

He knew it was only a matter of time.

But he knew it was a long-time coming.

The words he feared the most as the Ultimate Philanthropist:

…

…

…

…

…

…

"...We have to tell the world our secret…"

---

CHAPTER 3: HOUSE OF 1000 LOW SPIRITS (DEADLY LIFE)

---

…

Hey everybody!

Someone is dead! Someone is dead!

And they're bleeding red!

Hey everybody!

It's time to play! It's time to play!

Find the killer and make them pay!

(Yaaaaaay!)

…

---

[The Grandview Mansion]

---

(Ballroom)

"W-Was zat… two Body Discovery Jingles?"

The second Body Discovery Jingle had alerted everyone to look up at the ceiling, the color draining from Manon's face as she came to the awful realization that everyone else did. The fact that there were two Body Discovery Jingles meant that what they had feared was going to happen, happened.

"Y-Yes…" Kikuko gulped. "Th-That is correct. W-Which means…"

"Nay!" Roderick, one of the two unnamed people from last chapter's Body Discovery, spoke up, pale-faced. "T-Two people be dead!"

Indeed.

The fact that two Body Discovery Jingles played could only mean that two people had died. And currently, one of those people was right in front of them, laying sprawled on the floor, limbs broken up like a broken Barbie doll. It could've been any one of them. But instead, it was one of the least likely people to have died.

…One Beauté Morose, who had been a recurring thorn in everyone's side since Chapter 1…

(Special shoutout to Wolfie and Sempi for giving me good reactions to this death. Makes me proud of what I do! :NeroProud:)

"So, she finally bit the dust," Yukihiko stepped forward, narrowing his eyes and twirling his braids.

"Geez, and I'm considered the freak?" Issac, the other of the two unnamed people from last chapter's Body Discovery, stepped up with a chuckle.

Yukihiko made no response.

If anything, he was glad two bodies had dropped.

Only meant that now all of them have a solid chance of getting out of this blasted haunted house. Yukihiko can rest easily and eat some food without worrying about the children. Speaking of whom, at this point, they should be enjoying some food now as well. As those poor children should…

"Perhaps we should find Fábio and the others who found the body," Kikuko pointed out. "Assuming he wasn't the one who…"

She trailed off, mentally slapping herself across the face for thinking of something so outlandish. Fábio was fine. She knew it herself. All he did was go to the bathroom. There… There really shouldn't be too much time for him to get… hurt… in-between like that… right?

The more she thought about it, the more she shuddered.

"Big problem with that unfortunately, Unmei," Issac spoke up in response to what Kikuko suggested.

He gestured to the door.

When they had first heard Manon's screams, they had all ran in from the Dining Hall. Back then, that door was open. Now, shortly after they had found the body, the door had slammed shut, locking the five (and Stanczyk) in a room with a rotting corpse.

Roderick was the first person to try and open the door.

As expected, it wouldn't budge.

"N-Nay!" Roderick exclaimed. "We be locked in! The spirits have locked us in!"

"Huh?" Eiji blinked. "I don't remember doing such a thing!"

"Shush Eiji," Kikuko quietly snapped her head toward her deceased twin brother.

Yukihiko scoffed.

"Roderick, honey, there are no such thing as ghosts," Yukihiko rolled his eyes. "The door being locked obviously has something to do with how this haunted house works which will probably end up being something explained during the Trial. So, let's quit screwing around and get this Investigation started already."

"W-Wow, you really aren't phased by all of zis, are you Monsieur Yuno?" Manon commented, contrasting the child caregiver's seriousness with her own meekish expression.

True to his word, the first thing Yukihiko did after saying all of that was storm straight toward Stanczyk. The jester had been oddly and ill-regularly silent, standing toward the side as he looked at Beauté's corpse with watery eyes. His lips were quivering. His body was shaking. All signs that he was about to burst into tears.

But Yukihiko didn't care.

Now wasn't the time to cry…

"Hey, you," Yukihiko frowned. "When can we get started with the Investigation already?"

"I-Investigation…?" Stanczyk turned toward Yukihiko, speaking as softly as a child who just witnessed their favorite toy get destroyed.

"Yes, Investigation," Yukihiko sighed. "Stay with me Stanczyk, honey. I have no time for games right now."

"B-But, how can you care about the Investigation, if you don't give yourself time to mourn?" Stanczyk's lips quivered.

"Hey!" Yukihiko snapped. "Don't you dare cry on me right now!"

He snapped his fingers, rudely trying to get the jester back on track. But the general golden rule was once Stanczyk starts crying, there was no stopping him. Not if you're Monoyena of course. The jester glanced up into the air, ripped out a piece of his jabot to wave around like a surrendering flag, and allowed his tears to burst from his mask's eye sockets and splash down onto the ground like a water faucet.

"W-WAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Stanczyk wailed. "T-TWO OF MY BEST FRIENDS DIED! AND THIS ONE WAS ESPECIALLY A FAN FAVORITE! W-WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"Ugh, here we go again," Yukihiko looked absolutely done with this jester.

"You're the one who egged him on to do this," Issac simply responded.

Regardless, it didn't seem like the Investigation could start just yet until Stanczyk calmed down. That was unfortunately in both Kikuko and Manon's case, both of whom had slowly walked up toward Beauté's to see what had become of her. Manon looked sick to her stomach but Kikuko…?

Kikuko was worried.

Because all she could think about at the moment was Fábio. Wherever he was, she prayed to Seiryuu that he was fine. That he didn't end up as the second body somehow. That he was doing fine on his own without her… and more specifically, that he wasn't too worried about her. Although, a part of her did hope to think that maybe he thought about her through all of—

She shook her head.

Now wasn't the time.

She glanced down at the body, feeling a chill run down her spine as she spotted a Blue Spirit examining their own body.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

Please Fábio. Please be fine…

---

(Theater of Mystery)

"K-Kazuki…?"

Alisa felt her legs give way.

"A-Alisa!" Fábio called out.

"Oh, now this is gonna be fucking good," Monoyena made sure to pick a good seat to watch this from, grinning sadistically as he watched the drama unfold before his very eyes.

The figure skater rushed over to Alisa, attempting to help her up. Joining him was Yumi and Aidan, both of whom also noted just how haunted she looked by the sight. But no matter how much they tried to help her up, she refused to budge.

She only kept a hand over her mouth, her face paling more than it usually did. Her eyes trembled as tears welled up within. She started to shake. She didn't want to believe it. She begged and prayed to whatever God existed that this was just some sick, twisted dream she found herself in. She wanted so hard to believe that the person she was with last night… that the person who she had spent her most comfortable night with…

…was still…

"I need to see him," Alisa spoke.

"No, you don't," Aidan shook his head, trying to cover Alisa's line of sight. "I'm sorry, Alisa. But you–"

"I need to see him!" Alisa begged, trying to move her head.

"Bambina…" Yumi tried to pull the clockmaker away from Kazuki. "Listen to us. Da sight you'll see… it ain't… it ain't pretty."

"I don't care!" Alisa fought and struggled hard, but with the lack of food in her system, it was all futile. "I need to see him! I have to see him! I have to see if he's alright!"

"Bambina, ah—" Yumi tried to argue.

"Alisa, stop," Fábio grimaced. "Kazuki is—"

"Let her go…" Mara spoke up.

Compared to the more empathetic Aidan, Fábio and Yumi doing everything they could to avoid letting Alisa see what had become of the one person she was arguably closest with, Mara wasn't having it. Glancing away, Mara punched the palm of her hand and tipped her head down in a mock prayer…

…a somber mock prayer.

"Lao Shi says that for one to accept truths, one has to face it for themselves," Mara recited. "If she wants to see him, so be it. Besides, what good is it not letting her see the body we'll have to investigate for the murder anyway?"

Hearing that, Aidan, Fábio and Yumi slowly released their hold on Alisa, still uncertain whether this would be the right call for Alisa to do.

But Mara knew it had to be done.

She had firsthand experience with that verse. As someone who's encountered the grotesque many times before, she knew what she was talking about. And she knew she made a strong point with the investigation portion as well.

Mara stood back, allowing Alisa to have her moment of peace between herself and Kazuki's lifeless corpse.

They all did.

And they all watched as the clockmaker slowly approached Kazuki's body.

His horribly mutilated body.

A grotesque sight.

Enough for Alisa to let out a tearful gasp as she dropped to her knees, a few inches away from Kazuki's body. His usually sleek hair was disheveled and out of place. His clothing was pierced by protruding broken bones covered in his own blood. Bones that split from his elbows. Limbs bruised into an unnatural state. And his face…

God.

His face…

Alisa slowly reached out for his face.

His horribly disfigured face…

The face that once belonged to the one man who she felt safe with. The face that once belonged to the one man that would assure her that everything was alright. The face that once held that reassuring smile… That grim yet reassuring smile.

She tried to move Kazuki's head, but all it did was flop into a completely different angle. One touch was all it took for it to move… an indicator that Kazuki's neck was completely broken. Whoever did this… completely broke him.

And seeing him in this state, completely broke her.

"Agh… ack… urk…" Alisa quietly sobbed. "K-Kazuki…? K-Kazuki…? L-Look what they did to you…"

"Alisa…" Aidan stepped forward.

Mara held out her hand, forcing the track star to stop where he was. She shook her head, signaling for him that she needed a moment to grieve if anything. It was the only thing they could do at the moment. Just… allow her this final moment with what was left of Kazuki. So, there they stood, watching Alisa as she tried to make out what little she could of Kazuki's face.

Tears pattered down onto the floor as she tried desperately to feel the features that made Kazuki… well, Kazuki.

But all she could feel were dislocated bones after dislocated bones.

Some even completely shattered…

Then, her fingers trailed down to his clothing…

To the formal clothing he had never changed out of…

Her fingers touched the part of the suit that was covered in her blood, and almost instantly, she recoiled. She rubbed her fingers together. Then, gritting her teeth, she buried her face against Kazuki's corpse, trying her best to hug what was left of him. Trying to hug what was essentially a broken husk of a great man.

"Agk… urk… agk… urk… agk…" Alisa sobbed.

It was official.

Kazuki Nobukatsu was gone.

And she never even got to tell him how she felt…

---

(Ballroom)

"WAHHHHHHHHHH!" Stanczyk continued to sob. "OH BOOHOO! BOOHOO! BOOHOO! I'M… I'M… I'M GONNA MISS THIS GIRL SO MUCH! WAHHHHHHH!"

Compared to Alisa's obviously more genuine sobs, Stanczyk made sure his hysterical sobs were as annoying as possible. Being locked in a room as five people and being stuck dealing with a corpse and this…? Yeah, that was enough to drive anyone crazy. Fortunately for everyone here, Yukihiko had lost his patience a long time ago…

He stormed up toward Stanczyk, ready to smack him across the cheek… but froze before he could even do so.

A smack across the cheek would've counted as violence against Stanczyk, wouldn't it?

Knowing that much…

Yukihiko gently placed his hand over Stanczyk's cheek, slowly caressing it like a mother would to her own child. Slowly, but surely, that eased Stanczyk's toddler-like wails into infant-like whimpers. Despite how annoyed he was, Yukihiko bit back all that sense of frustration and forced a smile.

"Oh Stanczyk, honey…" Yukihiko sighed. "It's okay. It's going to be okay."

"H-Huh?" Stanczyk tilted his head, tears trailing down his eye sockets. "M-Mommy…?"

"That's right, Stanczyk sweetie," Yukihiko didn't even begin to show how irritated he was being called that. "Now, I know you're upset, but please be a good boy and start this Investigation, okay honey? We won't be able to find out who killed this... girl... otherwise."

Stanczyk's lips quivered.

He looked down, like a timid little child who got separated from his mother. He slowly nodded his head; his sobbing having ceased but still looking quite sad that Beauté was the one who ended up biting the dust. Lord knows how he'll react once he sees Kazuki's body. Not that Yukihiko knew who the second body ended up being.

But soon enough, they'll all know once they get the new Stanczyk Files.

"Good," Yukihiko sighed in relief.

"Aye, that be a mighty fine skill ye have," Roderick pointed out, folding his arms. "Stopping this jestin fool to stop salting the seas, argh."

"Tsk, it was nothing," Yukihiko twirled his braid in a matter-of-factly manner. "All we need to do now is just get the Stanczyk Files and be on our way…"

"Eh?" Stanczyk blinked. "But what about the other rules?"

Pause.

All eyes turned toward Stanczyk. Now that he had stopped crying, it was back to looking like an innocent lost puppy again. That cheerful smile and that tilt of his head as he happily pointed out something that none of them have ever heard of before.

"Pardon me but…" Kikuko raised her hand. "...What do you mean about 'other rules'?"

"Well, isn't it obvious?!" Stanczyk grinned. "Two Body Discovery Jingles played, meaning there are two best friends that are dead! Therefore, the case you'll be investigating today isn't going to be like any typical case! That's why there are new rules!"

Stanczyk leaned forward, his face distorting as he tilted his head like the Chesire cat. His grin grew wider and his red eyes flared with a sinister blood red hue.

"NeW rULeS fOr a DoUbLe MuRdEr CaSe!" Stanczyk's voice distorted. "iSn'T tHaT jUsT cOoL?"

---

(Theater of Mystery)

"A Double Murder Case?"

…

When Alisa removed her eyes from Kazuki's body, she overheard a conversation that had been going on at the moment between the other four and Monoyena. Just in time too because this was definitely information she needed to know before she could even think to grieve for Kazuki's death. She slowly released herself from Kazuki's grasp and slowly approached the group…

"How does a Double Murder Case work?" Alisa carefully asked, wiping away any stray tears.

"Well, well, well, look who decided to join us," Monoyena couldn't help but snicker. "What? Finally decided your little boytoy is a little broken, eh? Fucking bummer… ya floppy dick-sucking pig. Bwa… Bwahahahahahahahaha!"

Alisa didn't say anything.

She didn't need to.

Just the look in her eyes told Monoyena that he was doing his job correctly. The seething rage she kept inside her over what happened to Kazuki… If she really wanted to, she could go and rip Monoyena to shreds right about now. Rip him apart for what he had said about…

No.

She shouldn't.

She won't find out the truth about what happened to Kazuki if she was a mutilated pile of shit scattered inside the Theater of Mystery… or wherever Monoyena was going to do it. So instead, she held her breath and said nothing.

"Monoyena, insult us later and answer the question," Mara took charge. "How does a Double Murder Case work?"

"Women," Monoyena scoffed. "Can't take a fucking joke. Am I right, lads?"

He gestured toward Fábio and Aidan.

"Dude… no one thinks you're funny," Aidan deadpanned.

"Just answer the question," Fábio frowned.

"Fucking hell, fine!" Monoyena seemed a little irritated that no one was playing along but… "If ya wanna know so badly then fucking fine! A Double Murder Case is a simple case in which ya got two dead bodies in play! The Investigation is like any other Investigation, with the only difference being you wankers gathering evidence for the Double Murder Trial!"

The hyena took out his Barbie Blade and spun it around with that toothy grin of his.

"In every Double Murder Trial, yer job is to find out who the fucker is that killed the first victim discovered," Monoyena explained.

"The first victim… discovered?" Yumi blinked. "So, like… whoever da Body Discovery Jingle first played fer…?"

"Wow, ya got it right away," Monoyena grinned. "That's pretty good… fer a fucking big-chested lesbo! Bwa… Bwahahahahahahaha!"

Yumi did not find that comment amusing.

"But the Body Discovery Jingle played for an entirely different body, didn't it?" Fábio asked. "I mean, Kazuki's body wasn't even found until after the first Jingle."

"Y-Yeah… and I was the first one to find his body," Aidan shifted away from the grotesque sight of Kazuki's corpse.

The implications of what this meant…

Almost immediately, Alisa stepped up, her face paling. If this meant what she thought this meant, then… what she wanted to do for Kazuki. The truth she so desperately wanted to find out about Kazuki… About what happened to him…

"What about the second victim?" Alisa asked, her voice shaking. "If the goal is to find out who killed the first victim discovered, what about…"

"That's the kicker!" Monoyena shrugged. "Second victim discovered is completely optional! Meaning, if ya want to save time in a Double Murder Trial, ya can totally ignore the second victim and focus all yer cards on the first!"

"Y-You mean to say…" Alisa widened her eyes, refusing to believe this to be fact. "We can go into this case… and not have to figure out the truth over what happened to…"

She glanced over to Kazuki.

"Yep!" Monoyena already knew who she was referring to. "So, uh… if ya really wanted to solve this murder here, ya really should've found this piece of shit first. Bwa… Bwahahahahahaha!"

The laugh rang in her ears.

In short, this was exactly what she feared.

Thanks to the rules of the Double Murder Case, Kazuki's death meant nothing in this upcoming Trial. It would be meaningless for anyone to figure out what had happened to Kazuki. Meaningless to solve a case in which he's not even the victim of interest. Somehow, Alisa knew for a fact just how unfair that was.

Her face tinged with sadness as her eyes rested on Kazuki's.

Will there really be no justice for what happened to him?

---

(Ballroom)

"...And that's basically it for the rules!" Stanczyk proudly exclaimed. "So! What do you think?"

…

Right as Monoyena explained how the Double Murder Trial/Case worked, Stanczyk had done the same thing. The five in the Ballroom listened attentively, taking in every word. Compared to the ones in the Theater, these people had little to worry about when it came to investigating the first body discovered.

"So, in summary…" Yukihiko glanced at his nails. "Only Beauté's death will matter in the grand scheme of things. Whoever the second victim is… We don't necessarily need to solve their case unless we really want to."

Yukihiko glanced up toward Stanczyk.

"Do I have that correct?" he asked.

"Yep!" Stanczyk grinned, before quickly switching to a more saddened expression. "But isn't that so sad? You only get to solve for one person and one person only. S-So the fact is… You might never get a chance to figure out what happened… to my second best friend! W-WAHHHHHHHHHHH! THAT'S SO CRUEL!"

That was indeed cruel.

No one could deny that.

At the moment, the five didn't know whose body was discovered second. The fact remained that they shouldn't care, given that they were standing next to the first. The more important body in question. But the very idea that the Double Murder Case rule represented…

That in itself was messed the fuck up.

"Yes yes, cruel," Yukihiko rolled his eyes over Stanczyk's incessant crying. "Now that you've explained the rules, can we get this Investigation started already?"

"Oh, most definitely best friend!" Stanczyk immediately switched to a hearty grin. "To you, my five best friends… A body has been discovered! After a certain amount of time has passed, the super fun Playhouse Trial will begin! As such…"

On cue, a notification sound popped out on everyone's eTicket. Then, a second one shortly followed. Two notifications popping up was something that had never happened before, but under the context of the Double Murder Case, it made sense. Two notifications could only mean one thing: the Evidence application notifying the playmates of two new Stanczyk Files to review for the case.

"...Oooh, this is going to be so much fun!" Stanczyk grinned ecstatically. "A Double Murder Case in our Killing Game!"

Stanczyk leaned forward, watching everyone slowly open up the Stanczyk Files to see whose body it was that had been discovered first. Once the realization hit, that was when the somber looks were exhibited on… only a couple of people. Regardless, that didn't stop the jester's face and voice from distorting, his grin widening as his red eye glinted sinisterly.

"sO, wHaT aRe yOu wAiTinG fOr, kiDS?" Stanczyk questioned. "mAkE tHiS kiLLeR fEeL sOmE sHaMe…"

---

[INVESTIGATION BEGIN]

---

(Theater of Mystery)

The Investigation Period had begun.

For Alisa, it was immediate.

The moment Monoyena declared that the Investigation Period had officially started, Alisa had wasted no time in opening up the Evidence application. She scrolled past each Stanczyk File: Emmeline, Riku, the first victim discovered until she finally landed on…

Stanczyk File #3b.

Victim: Kazuki Nobukatsu

Cause of Death: Unknown. Most of the victim's bones are notably broken.

Kazuki's death was… unknown?

Alisa noted just how vague the Stanczyk File seemed to be this time around. Before, these Files gave a good insight on how a victim died. Emmeline with her broken neck. Riku with a gunshot to the head. But this time, the Cause of Death for Kazuki was… unknown?

Was there a reason why the Cause of Death was unknown…?

Or was it just Monoyena and Stanczyk's way of keeping things nice and interesting here?

Her train of thought was interrupted by Aidan's voice.

"Man, an Investigation Period and we're actively encouraged not to investigate Kazuki?" Aidan sighed. "Geez, we don't even know where the first body was found anyway."

"As I said, should've found it sooner, jackass!" Monoyena couldn't help but laugh. "Bwa… Bwahahahahaha!"

"The only thing we can do is investigate Kazuki's death," Mara shook her head. "Better to do that than waste time looking for a body we don't know where it is."

"But waste time investigatin a body that don't even matter?" Yumi blinked, fixing her white Stetson hat.

That irked Alisa enough to speak up.

"Waste time investigating a body that doesn't even matter?" the clockmaker slowly repeated. "Do… Do you even hear yourself?"

"B-Bambina?" Yumi turned to Alisa, surprised.

The clockmaker wasn't happy.

How could she be after hearing something like that?

"So, are you saying that Kazuki didn't matter?" Alisa grimaced. "That we didn't just find his body completely mangled up and broken? That his body isn't just sitting there, right in front of us?"

"B-Bambina, now ya know I didn't mean it like dat…" there was a level of guilt riding over Yumi's face.

"Then, what did you mean?" Alisa folded her arms. "Oh. Since it's a Double Murder Trial, less work for us now that we don't have to investigate Kazuki's body. Let's just go and find the first victim and focus solely on them."

"B-Bambina, ah dink yer takin dings outta–" Yumi tried to argue.

"You know what?" the pain over Alisa's face was evident. "If you want to solve for the first victim so badly, just go. Okay? Just. Go."

"Bambina, I–" Yumi was about to say but this time, it was Mara who stepped up in front of her.

"Best to do as she says," Mara told her. "She's still…"

She glanced over toward Alisa, her expression hurt and mind still foggy over the mixed feelings that were churning within. She was committed to trying to figure out what had happened to Kazuki. Even with the rules of the Double Murder Case in play, she was still committed to figuring out what had happened to Kazuki…

"Grieving…" Mara finished. "Come on. Let's just step outside and leave her be for a moment."

Yumi wanted to object and apologize but knowing what Alisa was going through, she figured Mara was right. Alisa needed space to do her own thing. And if trying to solve Kazuki's murder was what she wanted to do then so be it. Begrudgingly, Yumi followed behind Mara, an apologetic look on her face that she hoped Alisa saw.

Alisa did not.

All she did was avoid eye contact as Yumi and Mara walked out of the room. Aidan shifted his eyes between the girls and gestured his thumb toward the cowgirl and the karate master. He smiled sheepishly.

"Y-Yeah, I'll just… go with them," Aidan simply said. "Uhh, take it easy, alright?"

Alisa didn't respond.

That was the track star's cue to head straight for the Hallway.

Now, the only people in the room were Alisa and Fábio.

And while Alisa simply went back to actually investigating Kazuki's body, Fábio had his eyes furrowed over the Stanczyk File. Furrowed in confusion. While the slight drama had been unfolding, he had been standing in his own corner reading the Stanczyk File for the first victim, praying to dear Seiryuu that the victim didn't turn out to be Kikuko somehow.

Instead…

---

(Ballroom)

"W-What is…?"

Kikuko stared blankly at the Stanczyk File that she had navigated to. She had wanted to begin her side of the Investigation, but what stopped her was instantly a moment of confusion. She wasn't alone in this either. Everyone else looked just as confused when they had found Stanczyk File #3a. Because the information on it was as follows:

Victim: Natasha Villeray

Cause of Death: Unknown. Most of the victim's bones are notably broken.

"N-Natasha… V-Villeray?" Manon blinked. "Mais, isn't zis supposed to be Madame Beauté Morose?"

"Supposed to be?" Issac furrowed his eyebrows. "It is Morose's body we're looking at."

"Mais… why does her Stanczyk File say… 'Natasha Villeray'?" Manon was seriously confused by that tidbit.

"Beats me," Issac shrugged. "What I'm more concerned with is her Cause of Death. I mean, look at it. Victim made it out with a bunch of broken bones and the Cause of Death is unknown. We've never had that happen before, have we?"

"The laddie be correct," Roderick nodded. "All of our previous Stanczyk Files be simple and concise. This be filled with more holes than a sinking ship!"

"Maybe even Stanczyk and Monoyena don't know how she died?" Kikuko suggested.

"Or, maybe this was done deliberately as another topic to solve in the Trial," Yukihiko glanced at his nails.

All eyes were on him now.

"Really?" Yukihiko scoffed. "Did no one consider that this idiot and his pet hyena…"

He glanced over to Stanczyk, who had an innocent smile over his face and simply waved his hand the moment he spotted the child caregiver giving him a look.

"...would go and pull something like this?" Yukihiko continued with a mutter.

It wasn't a bad theory.

The simple fact that the Stanczyk File they were provided this time around was vague was immediately a pretty big red flag they knew they had to look into. Whether it was done intentionally or unintentionally probably didn't matter, but to Yukihiko, at least he had some form of evidence backing up his claims:

"Besides, from the looks of it…" Yukihiko started to smirk. "The wounds Beauté or Natasha or whatever sustained seems to match exactly to what happened with our second victim."

The second victim.

Right.

Yukihiko had taken the time to look through both Stanczyk Files. Based on how frantic everyone else was in scrolling through their eTickets, it seemed like no one else had thought to do the same. Perhaps it was due to the confusion over the victim's name. But Yukihiko chalked it down to mere stupidity. Even children would've done the same…

Manon was the first to notice who was it that ended up on Stanczyk File #3b:

Victim: Kazuki Nobukatsu

Cause of Death: Unknown. Most of the victim's bones are notably broken.

"Ah… non…" Manon widened her eyes. "M-Monsieur Nobukatsu…"

"Nay, so he…" Roderick grimaced. "He really did…"

Kikuko didn't say anything noteworthy. Neither she nor Issac did. Issac seemed to be focused on something else entirely while Kikuko…? Firstly, she was relieved that the victim didn't turn out to be Fábio. But at the same time, she felt a tinge of sadness.

Kazuki was truly one of the better people in this cast of characters.

To see his name on the victim's list… It was… chilling…

Especially after how throughout their time here in this haunted house, Kazuki made his announcement of being the sacrificial lamb once again. And just yesterday, he had gone on a tangent over how living in a cycle of constant hunger was no way to live. To know that someone as admirable as that was now dead…

"Well, guess the guy got what he always wanted," Eiji muttered, floating over Kikuko's shoulder as he read the Stanczyk File.

No words.

Just Kikuko turning her head to sharply glare at him.

"W-Well, am I wrong?" Eiji smiled sheepishly.

Technically not, but that was too soon, even on her dead brother's part.

"Guess Yuno's right," Issac noted. "Based on the injuries, it does look like both Morose/Villeray and Nobukatsu died from the same thing."

"But from what?" Manon had to ask.

That was the question they needed to answer, didn't they?

---

(Theater of Mystery)

Alisa squatted down next to Kazuki's body and placed her eTicket to the side.

No words escaped her lips.

No words had to be spoken.

Based on what the Stanczyk File had said about Kazuki, most of the bones in his body were completely broken. Alisa glanced around the scene of the crime. Just based on simple observation, there didn't seem to be anything here that could've consistently broken his body up like this. No weapon in sight. Just a body and an area of blood…

If anything, Alisa considered whether or not the Empress statue could've had something to do with it but that in itself was a silly idea.

She leaned close toward Kazuki, her nose catching a peculiar scent.

She furrowed her eyebrows.

A… peculiar scent?

She followed the whiff, tracking it down with her nose. The more she followed it, the more she was able to locate the source of the aroma: his back. Beyond the gruesome display that was shown to anyone who would dare enter the Theater of Mystery was a sweet smelling aroma that wafted off of Kazuki's back.

It wasn't the smell of iron, therefore, it wasn't the smell of rotting blood.

So, whatever this was…

"What did you find?"

Alisa nearly had a fright.

She had forgotten that Fábio was pretty much the only person who didn't leave the Theater of Mystery like Aidan, Yumi, and Mara did. He was like her, more interested in figuring out what had happened to Kazuki rather than figuring out where the first victim was found and whatnot. Then again, this was probably because Fábio could afford to now that he knew that Kikuko wasn't the one who had become the victim.

"Oh, Fábio," Alisa sighed in relief. The relief was quickly replaced with suspicion. "Wait, you came to join me?"

"Hey, you looked like you could use a helping hand," Fábio shrugged, stuffing his hands inside his pockets.

"What about the rules of the Double Murder Case?" Alisa grimly asked. "Don't you think you'll be wasting your Investigation time trying to solve a murder that ultimately didn't matter?"

Oof.

She was still a little peeved by Yumi's comment.

"Well, the way I see it," Fábio gave her a reassuring smile. "Kazuki's murder matters just the same as… whoever the first victim was."

Yeah, even he was confused over who this Natasha Villeray person was. But he knew that wasn't a Japanese name so no need to worry! Right?

"Take a look," Fábio took out his eTicket and handed it to Alisa, flipping the Evidence to Stanczyk File #3a:

Victim: Natasha Villeray

Cause of Death: Unknown. Most of the victim's bones are notably broken.

Alisa blinked.

"Natasha… Villeray?" Alisa blinked. "Who's that?"

"Check the Cause of Death," Fábio specified.

She did just that.

And then, all too quickly, the realization hit.

"Wait," Alisa widened her eyes. "This Natasha person… She died in the exact same way Kazuki died. Which means…!"

"Whoever killed this Natasha person had to have been the same person who killed Kazuki," Fábio concluded with a nod. "Meaning no matter which body was found first, I think Kazuki will get his due justice anyway."

Alisa could feel the anxious feeling she'd been having exhaust through her body.

"Thank… Thank goodness for that," Alisa sighed in relief.

She placed a hand over her heart, her eyes looking hopeful now. For Kazuki's sake, this was definitely for the best. Whoever did this to him… Whoever decided to nearly destroy a great man's body so violently… Alisa never knew what vengeance was until today. Whoever did this was going to pay. She'll make sure of that…

"So, anyway, back to… whatever you were doing," Fábio allowed his eyes to twinkle for only a split second. "Did I just see you sniff Kazuki's body a moment ago?"

"Indeed," Alisa said as a matter-of-factly.

"Wow, you're admitting it outright?" Fábio blinked.

"What?" Alisa blinked. "What are you talking about? I noticed a scent coming from Kazuki's back."

She gestured to Fábio to squat down alongside her and sniff Kazuki's back. Although Fábio had to begrudgingly force himself to do it, when he did, he could see what the clockmaker was talking about. Now he knew of the sweet aroma that came from Kazuki's back and whatever it was… it definitely wasn't blood or anything like that.

"See?" Alisa fixed her glasses.

"H-Huh, you're right," Fábio blinked. "There is a sweet aroma but…"

He rubbed his chin.

"What is it?" the figure skater asked.

An excellent question to be had as both Fábio and Alisa tried hard to think of anything that could enact such a sweet-smelling aroma. But as their minds wandered toward all the different rooms this haunted house had to offer, none of them could come up with anything.

Seriously.

What was this sweet aroma on Kazuki's back?

---

(Ballroom)

Kikuko narrowed her eyes as she watched Beauté's Blue Spirit pace the room that she was in.

Although Beauté being a Blue Spirit was quite certainly a surprise (Kikuko would've betted her to be a Red Spirit just because she was Beauté), what wasn't surprising was how seemingly intrigued she was by what had become of her body. Despite being dead, she had a wicked smile over her face, as if she were enjoying every moment of being in the land of the deceased. Kikuko wanted to inquire more about this but…

She glanced around, noting the amount of people in the room.

If she were with Fábio, she could easily get away with interrogating Beauté's spirit over what had happened. All she would need to do was tell any interested party that she was just talking to the figure skater. But now that she was alone, talking to a bunch of spirits that no one could see in her own little corner was definitely going to raise some eyebrows.

Especially that of…

"You know…" Issac stepped up, making sure to stand right next to Kikuko as he peered over the mysterious Ultimate's body. "...Out of everyone here, I really didn't think she'd bite the dust so early."

Kikuko jumped in surprise.

"Hey, buddy!" Eiji suddenly appeared, looking to squeeze in-between Issac and Kikuko as if he were stopping the fans from shipping these two. "Ever hear of social distancing?!"

…Yeah.

Issac.

The one guy who posed a threat to her secret.

"So, you see anything yet, Unmei?" Issac spoke up.

"E-Excuse me?" Kikuko blinked, taken aback by his question.

"You know," Issac shrugged. "Clues. Evidence. Anything out of the ordinary. Stuff that can help us in the Trial."

"O-Oh, right!" Kikuko sighed in relief.

Maybe she sighed a little too hard because Issac definitely made sure to focus in on that. That was Kikuko's fault. She had forgotten that Issac had plus 10s on like Perception and Insight rolls. That was how observant he was with the littlest things. Especially something like Kikuko sighing in relief.

The toymaker tilted his head, curiously.

"...What did you think I was referring to?" Issac couldn't help but chuckle.

"Ah, don't worry about it," Kikuko tried her best to remain as calm as possible. "I was just thinking about our conversation from yesterday. That's all."

Issac examined her for a moment before slinking back, placing his hand behind Isolde's back.

"If you say so…" the toymaker didn't sound too convinced, but it seemed to be good enough of an answer for him to just back away like that.

Yeah.

There was no way she could talk to Beauté with this skink looming around her. She needed a Plan B. Quickly, she turned to Eiji, her voice soft and her words as minimal as possible so as to not raise any more suspicions than she already has with this guy. With a soft whisper, she called out to Eiji.

"Pssst, Eiji," Kikuko whispered.

"Yeah, Sis?" Eiji blinked.

"I'm going to need you to take over the interrogation for me," Kikuko softly instructed. "Talk to the Blue Spirit. Report back to me over what you learned."

"Eh?" Eiji looked surprised. "You're leaving this job to me? Your own brother?"

Eiji looked close to crying.

"Oh Sis…" Eiji sniffled. "To give me such an important mission. I'm so touched."

"Do it before I exorcize you from this world," Kikuko flashed a blue eye in Eiji's general direction.

"Y-Yipes!" Eiji exclaimed, quickly giving her a mock salute. "Aye aye, Sissumonksuu!"

That was all that was required to get him to start moving. Once he floated away from Kikuko to talk to Beauté, the shrine priestess let out another sigh of relief. Another sigh of relief that prompted a certain toymaker to poke his head close to her. That same sly smile he had on his face would never cease to irk her as he let out a chuckle.

"Did Isolde and I just catch you talking to yourself?" Issac asked.

"Ah, you saw that?" Kikuko tried her best to play it off by giving him a polite bow. "I apologize. I was simply muttering random theories to myself."

"Is that so…?" again, the toymaker didn't sound too convinced.

But lucky for her, he didn't pry too hard into it. With a shrug, the toymaker simply leaned back and gave Kikuko his signature sly smile.

"Well then," he chuckled. "You can't come up with good theories if you aren't investigating. Care to join me as my temporary Investigative partner?"

"Do I have a choice?" Kikuko asked.

"...Does she have a choice, Isolde?" Issac asked his toy caterpillar.

Silence.

"Ha, guess not!" Issac laughed.

"Figures…" Kikuko sighed.

She shot a look toward Eiji, noting how the spirit was getting ready to speak to Beauté. If he can dig up any information that would serve to be any use to the Trial, that would be perfect. And tough to admit too, Kikuko would also probably have to owe her own dead brother big time if that was the case. She took a deep breath as she followed behind Issac to wherever he wanted to investigate.

Come on Eiji… she thought. I'm counting on you…

---

(Theater of Mystery)

"Well, would you look at that?"

That was the next thing Fábio had said shortly after noting the sweet aroma on Kazuki's back. Now, looking at the area surrounding Kazuki's body and instantly, both the figure skater and clockmaker were able to catch a trail of blood on the floor.

"Is that… a trail of blood?" Alisa asked.

"Sure looks like it," Fábio nodded. "And wherever there's a trail, there's also a starting line and a finish…"

Rightfully so, the two began to follow the trail.

The first instance of this trail was where Kazuki's body was. That was their starting point. And slowly but surely, they carefully followed the trail to where it would inevitably stop. Luckily for them, the trail was an easy straight line from Kazuki's body to the entrance of the Theater of Mystery. Meaning if it went any further, it should go–

Huh?

Fábio stopped dead in his tracks, his expression confused.

"Fábio?" Alisa blinked. "What's wrong?"

"The trail…" Fábio narrowed his twinkling eyes. "It… stops?"

"What do you mean?" Alisa fixed her glasses.

"I guess the better term to describe it is that… it's… incomplete… somehow…" the louder Fábio said it, the more confused he got.

The clockmaker decided to take the initiative to see for herself.

She squatted down to where they had stopped: the entrance into the Hallway/the entrance into the Theater of Mystery. Right on the crease that the door would usually block off when it closed was exactly where the blood trail stopped. And it was exactly as Fábio said. The blood trail looked absolutely incomplete. Like as if the blood trail had gotten into a straight line and just suddenly…

"You're right…" Alisa realized. "This blood trail should've continued past the Theater of Mystery into the Hallway shouldn't it? But instead it…"

"...just stops, right," Fábio finished her train of thought with a nod.

Alisa turned to Fábio.

"How exactly did that happen?" she asked.

Fábio took a moment to ponder this.

"I… don't know," the figure skater simply said.

He turned back to the rest of the trail that they had followed. Fábio thought it best to judge the distance Kazuki's body was from the Theater of Mystery's entrance but then again, he wasn't a professional in understanding the metric system and how to calculate it on sight. All he saw was a trail of blood that was left in a straight line.

A trail of blood…

"...Better question yet," Fábio furrowed his eyebrows. "Why is there a trail of blood to begin with?"

And what could it possibly mean…?

---

(Ballroom)

"You… want to talk to Stanczyk?"

Kikuko looked at Issac, incredulous that the toymaker's first step in this Investigation was to talk to the highly emotional jester proctoring them like some teacher on recess duty. That wide grin over his face was forever going to be unsettling to look at, especially since it was on a jester mask of all things. As she stepped back, she noted Issac's smile of reassurance.

"Why not?" Issac shrugged. "There is one thing I want to understand before we get started with anything."

Kikuko wanted to ask what that was but she expected to find out soon enough. She watched as Issac stepped forward to approach Stanczyk.

"Yo, Stan," Issac brushed his hair to the side. "You got a moment?"

"Anything for you, best friend!" Stanczyk declared, placing his hands over his hips with a cheerful grin. "What's up?!"

"I've always been meaning to ask but…" Issac began. "...How exactly does this haunted house work?"

Stanczyk stopped grinning and simply tilted his head, confused.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Well, I mean, the biggest feature of the haunted house is that it can change rooms, right?" Issac smiled. "I just want to know how exactly that function works, that's all."

Stanczyk didn't say anything.

It was as if he were standing there, simply pondering whether or not this was information he could reveal or not. The jester's mask shifted to a more neutral expression. If Kikuko and Issac were taking some sort of hallucinogen right about now, they'd probably see question marks fly around Stanczyk's face or something like that.

"Y-You mean… you haven't figured it out, yet?" Stanczyk blinked.

"Well, it's not like the functionality of this space has been exactly obvious," Kikuko pointed out.

"Which is why I decided to ask the one and only Stanczyk," Issac pandered. "Surely, you can tell us how exactly this place works, right?"

"Hmmm, I don't know, best friend…" Stanczyk slowly said. "...That's not exactly information I can give to anyone."

"If you're worried about Monoyena, there's really no need to," Issac smiled. "He's not even here, now is he?"

"There's no way that would work, Issac," Kikuko blankly glanced at the toymaker.

"Ah, wonderful point, best friend!" Stanczyk grinned. "Sure, I'll tell you then!"

"It worked?" Kikuko looked at Stanczyk in disbelief.

"Never doubt Isolde, Unmei," Issac gave the shrine priestess a sly smile.

Kikuko knew for a fact she wasn't even thinking of Isolde when she said her comment of disbelief.

"So, best friends, you wanted to know how the haunted house works, right?" Stanczyk grinned. "It's quite easy!"

Stanczyk placed his hands over his hips.

"First thing's first!" the jester smiled. "As you may know, some of the rooms in this haunted house can change from time to time!"

"Of course," Kikuko simply nodded. "It's been the bane of mysteries since being here."

"But what you probably didn't know is that the rooms change automatically every morning at 7 AM!" Stanczyk revealed.

Kikuko blinked.

Issac seemed intrigued.

"Really now?" the toymaker asked. "And is that a consistent thing everyday?"

"Of course!" Stanczyk proudly admitted. "Everyday 7 AM is the general rule!"

"But what about the rooms it changes to?" Kikuko asked. "Is there a pattern to it or…?"

"I dunno!" Stanczyk innocently declared. "All I know and can say is what the rooms do every morning! That's pretty much it! Other than that, this haunted house… makes my head hurt sometimes…"

Stanczyk looked close to crying when he said that.

"And this is why you ask the man in charge of the game about certain things," Issac smiled. "Now, we have a clear picture of when the rooms can actually change."

"I'm… still surprised that Stanczyk would give us information so freely like that," Kikuko blinked.

"Sometimes, just asking has its perks," Issac gave a sly smile.

"So, did I help?" Stanczyk tilted his head like a puppy.

"Absolutely," Issac nodded.

"Y-YAY!" Stanczyk clapped his hands excitedly. "N-Now I feel like a good best friend! Weeeeeee!"

Indeed.

Stanczyk most certainly did help put a little perspective over how the rooms change, but there were still quite a lot of mysteries regarding it. Behind that giggling childish demeanor, Kikuko had to wonder if the jester was telling the whole truth… or secretly keeping some facts to himself.

---

(Hallway)

"Man, ah messed up didn't ah?"

Yumi leaned against the wall, her mind still racing over how much she had messed over her poor choice of words. Standing right beside her were Mara and Aidan. The former didn't have many words of comfort to share with her cowgirl friend. Aidan on the other hand gave her a thumbs up and a positive grin.

"Hey, don't worry too much about it, alright?" Aidan grinned. "Alisa is just… having a hard time right now. I mean, we all saw what happened to Kazuki. If I was in her shoes…"

Aidan glanced away.

"Yeah, I'd totally lose my rocker too," he frowned.

"Ah still feel bad," Yumi sighed. "Ah mean, if ah didn't say what ah said…"

"There's no point in beating yourself up over something like this," Mara sighed. "If you really feel bad about it, just go and apologize to her next time you see her. That's it."

"A-Ah know but… w-what if she doesn't… y'know…" Yumi looked down. "Accept mah apology?"

"Well, then sucks to suck," Mara shrugged. "It's on her now for not letting go of a few misuse of words."

Yumi… wasn't sure if she could be okay with that but then again, this advice was coming from Mara, a notoriously negative person. She looked past the karate master toward Aidan, who only gave her nothing but positivity and a thumbs-up.

"She'll accept your apology," Aidan grinned. "Don't worry, Alisa's not that type of person!"

Now that was the positivity she was looking for!

"Yeah? Well, I just heard the bitch talk about how insufferable it was being around a fucking lesbo in a hat! Fucking homophobic slurs and the likes. You should've heard it! It was fucking diabolical! Bwa… Bwahahahahaha!"

Monoyena had waddled past the group of three and was preparing to head off toward the other end of the Hallway. Obviously, his words meant nothing. They were just lies to throw Yumi down in the dumps moreso than she already was. They all knew this. And yet, it still had an effect on Yumi. An effect big enough to get Mara to change the topic.

"And where exactly are you going?" Mara asked.

"That's none of yer business ya fucking skank!" Monoyena simply said. "Besides, I should be asking the question of, 'What the fuck are you three doin here?' What happened to finding the first victim discovered? Or did ya just give up? Bwa… Bwahahahahaha!"

"More like we were just hanging out here and discussing alibis!" Aidan frowned. "See? Totally focused!"

"Or you could've just bitten back with 'That's none of your business' as well but, you do you," Mara sighed.

"O-Oh…" Aidan blinked, looking embarrassed. "Right…"

"Bwa… Bwahahahahahahaha!" Monoyena couldn't help but laugh. "Yeah, kind of amazed how a fucking bozo like this guy lived till Round 3! Ain't that a riot? Bwa… Bwahahahahahaha!"

Monoyena sure seemed to think so.

But again, no one else actually did find it funny. Especially worse was that now, Aidan was put in quite a similar moment of defeat as Yumi was. So, leave it to Mara to step up and put the hyena in his place. She glowered over the child-sized plush hyena and folded her arms.

"If you're just here to poke fun at us, leave," Mara frowned. "We have no time for your games right now."

"Alright, alright, I'm off, I'm off," the hyena couldn't help but wipe a stray tear from his eye before waddling off. But of course not without muttering, "Like I actually wanted to hang out with a couple of wankers. Bitch, please…"

When Monoyena finally left, Mara felt her body relax.

"Ugh, thought he would never leave," Mara sighed in relief.

She glanced toward Aidan and Yumi.

"You two alright?" she asked.

"H-Huh?" Yumi blinked before giving the karate master a smile of reassurance. "Uh, y-yea. Fer sure, bambina."

"S-Same," Aidan simply gave Mara a thumbs-up. "Just grinds my gears to know that little thing can go and stuff like that and get away with it here."

"That's the point," Mara muttered. "He's actively baiting someone to go attack him. Classic rage bait is what they call it nowadays."

Yumi lowered her white Stetson hat over that thought.

"Anyway, what was this about alibis?" Mara turned to Aidan, curiously.

"Oh that?" Aidan blinked. "I was just saying stuff to get Monoyena off our back. No biggie."

"No no, I think that's something we should be doing now that we're here together," Mara pointed out. "Telling each other where we were during the morning before the bodies were found."

"Then, you first!" Aidan gave Mara a thumbs-up and a smile.

"No need," Mara shook her head. "I have Yumi and Manon to back me up with my alibis."

"Ayo?" Aidan blinked. "Why does this interaction feel so one-sided?!"

"Because it kind of is," Mara folded her arms. "Manon, Yumi and I attended the Morning Meeting as we usually do. Only issue here is that you weren't there. Why?"

Aidan took a moment to consider his options. Not like there were any options to choose from. Aidan wanted to help however he could. So with another thumbs-up, Aidan supplied the karate master a healthy smile of reassurance.

"I was with Roderick all morning," Aidan grinned, before allowing his brow to lower. "The moment I woke up, the poor guy was all freaked out over something. So, we were in the Bathroom throughout the entire morning. We did separate shortly before the first Body Discovery Jingle played though."

"If ah may interject," Yumi peeked her head, curiously. "What exactly was dat rascal so jumpy 'bout dis time?"

"Eh, it's Roderick," Aidan shrugged. "The guy's jumpy about everything. When we were in the Bathroom together—"

He noticed the strange glances he was getting.

"Not like that!" Aidan frowned. "I just meant as a dude helping another dude out in the middle of their mental crisis kind of 'together'!"

"Continue," Mara had little patience for such a detour in a conversation.

"Right," Aidan rubbed the back of his neck, sheepishly. "Anyway, Roderick kept mentioning something about seeing spirits last night. You know. Usual Roderick, right?"

"Spirits?" Yumi blinked. "Ya dink dis haunted house be gettin to em?"

"Eh, that's what I think too but man was as pale as a ghost," Aidan shrugged. "Pun not intended, but I'm inclined to believe he must've seen something last night to get him so spooked."

Mara figured it was only a matter of time before Roderick would've deluded himself into seeing actual spirits, but regardless, there was one more question she wanted to ask. She glanced away but kept her arms folded.

"By the way, weren't you and Roderick bunking with Kazuki in the Armory?" Mara asked. "Doesn't that mean you two would've technically been the last people to see Kazuki alive?"

"Well, here's the weird part," Aidan frowned. "Kazuki never came back to the room. So, really, neither Roderick and I would've seen him after that waltz party thing we had last night."

In other words, that was when Kazuki's movements started to blur. What happened to Kazuki after the party and who was the last person to be seen with him? Mara vaguely recalled Kazuki staying back in the Ballroom but…

"So, did any of that help?" Aidan tilted his head, curiously.

"I'm…" Mara had to ask herself that same question.

Did Aidan's alibi help at all?

"…not sure…"

---

(Ballroom)

Look at her.

That Blue Spirit.

Eiji had encountered many spirits in his pastime as Kikuko's trusty ghostly partner. There were the really agreeable ones that accepted what had become of them quite easily. There were some that took a bit to accept it. And then there were the Red Spirits, whose hate and vengeance defined the power they had. The louder the hate, the scarier they were. As the spirit of Kikuko's ten year old brother, obviously, he was way out of his league when handling those.

Lucky for him, the spirit he was asked to talk to was a Blue Spirit.

The only problem?

It's a Blue Spirit of Beauté, which in his mind, was probably ten times worse than any Red Spirit he had to deal with. Eiji paused when he thought about that. Actually, Red Spirits were still scarier but if he squinted hard enough, Beauté could definitely pass as a Red Spirit for sure!

He gulped and slowly approached her.

At the moment, Beauté's Spirit was simply admiring the state of her body. There was a bright smile over her face as she admired every injury she sustained. The twisted limbs. The obvious broken bones. Her cold dead face.

Eiji hated to interrupt whatever romanticizing thoughts she had over her own body, but he knew his sister was counting on him. That's right! Kikuko was counting on him to do this! He knew Beauté was a menace in the world of the living, but in the afterlife?

She was in his territory now!

"Hey you! Blue Spirit of that really scary girl everyone hates!"

Eiji floated toward Beauté with a determined look over his face. One turn from the mysterious Ultimate was all it took for her to suddenly brighten herself into a smile.

"Oh my!" Beauté feigned a gasp. "Well, aren't you a cutie! Let me guess…"

The mysterious Ultimate leaned forward, her spiritual eyes piercing Eiji's soul.

"…Kikuko's twin brother who died when he was 10?" Beauté asked, tilting her head, menacingly.

"H-Huh?!" Eiji looked downright horrified by how quickly she guessed it. "H-How did you— H-How did you—?"

"Child's play," Beauté placed a finger over her spiritual lips. "You're a twin. Therefore, you bear a strong resemblance to Kikuko. As for how I guessed you were 10…"

She shrugged.

"Being 10 years of age seems to be a recurring feature throughout this story now, wouldn't you agree?" Beauté hummed innocently.

"I… don't even know what you're talking about," Eiji blinked.

"Ah heh heh heh," Beauté simply laughed. "Not many people do. But then again, I'm sure you were already aware of this, seeing how you must've been an active audience to our little situation."

She wasn't wrong.

Her reputation preceded her even in death.

"You know, thinking about it even further," Beauté hummed. "This must be the secret Fábio Barbosa was entrusted to keep, wasn't it? And what an elegant secret this was. To see that the Ultimate Shrine Priestess as such an elegant affinity to see and speak to spirits…"

She clapped her hands.

"Oh, how truly elegant!" Beauté giggled. "If this doesn't knock her up the rankings; I'm not sure what will!"

"Okay, enough with the psycho talk," Eiji frowned. "Let's get down to business here! Tell me! Who is it that killed you?"

"No," Beauté smiled innocently.

"…Wait, so, 'No' as in you made a promise to the killer not to reveal it or…" Eiji remembered the last time a Spirit said 'No' to revealing their killer, it was due to some false sense of honor. So, maybe this here was the same—

"'No' as in I don't want to," Beauté smiled.

"W-What?!" Eiji blinked. "B-But why?!"

Beauté's smile twitched, as if t the spirit had said something quite offensive to the mysterious Uptimate. Fixing her posture; Beauté remained ever so composed.

"Little boy," Beauté started to smirk. "Do you even know who I am?"

"Huh?" Eiji blinked. "Uhhh, you're the scary girl who made an entirely fake crime scene back in like… that Broadway show."

"And do you think someone like that will simply give you the answer to an otherwise grand mystery?" Beauté challenged. "I'm insulted little boy. Truly, insulted."

"Ehhhh?" Eiji widened his eyes. "So, you're just not gonna say anything? Not even to me? I mean. I'm just a lowly spirit who watches everything on the side. Remember?"

"And yet, the only reason you've come to approach me is so you can relay all my information to your sister," Beauté deduced. "Please, little boy. I'm not an idiot."

Well, that was worth a shot.

"But not telling me anything and letting everyone suffer like this!" Eiji frowned. "It's not fair!"

"Ah heh heh…" Beauté couldn't help but find amusement in that sentence. "Not fair? I'll tell you what's not fair. Beings like you and your sister having such a fantastical Talent like this to give yourselves an unfair advantage in such an elegant Killing Game!"

Beauté leaned forward, this time, her eyes growing cold and expression filling with a level of distaste.

"Honestly, had it not been for the other previous spirits not saying squat, we probably would've had the most boring Killing Game in existence!" Beauté ranted. "So how dare you even suggest how unfair it is for me to give you handouts!"

Eiji backed away.

Despite her being a Blue Spirit, the ideology she believed in even after death was powerfully scary. He remembered this person as someone who messed things up just because it would make her experience more interesting. Now that she was dead and roaming around as a Blue Spirit, Eiji would've thought that ideology would've faded. Instead, it strengthened. Her outlook and life and death… and the aspiration to experience the fun things of life… it strengthened.

"Ah heh heh…" Beauté calmed herself with that sinister smile of hers. "Oopsies. Got too emotional there, didn't I?"

"Uhh, n-no!" Eiji chuckled sheepishly. "N-Not… N-Not at all!"

"Ah heh heh, thank goodness," Beauté smiled innocently.

Yeesh.

Part of Eiji wishes Beauté was still alive so that he never had to interact with her in the afterlife ever again. All it took was one actual one-on-one interaction with her for him to think so. And yet with those in the living, they had to spend their time with her… everyday?

His heart went out to his sister.

"Now then, little boy," Beauté smiled. "If you wish to pass on a message, here's something you can pass on to your sister, courtesy of me!"

"O-Oh?" Eiji looked slightly hopeful.

"Tell her I said this," Beauté leaned forward, her eyes piercing into his soul again. "Figure everything out yourself."

Then, she leaned back and smiled.

"That is all," she giggled. "Ah heh heh heh…"

Yep.

Exactly what Eiji should've expected.

Man, Kikuko was not going to be happy with this was she?

---

(Theater of Mystery)

"Well, we looked through just about everything here. There's really nothing else here that's noteworthy."

Sure enough, as Fábio had said, the only clues they could find in the Theater of Mystery were just the sweet aroma on Kazuki's back and the blood trail leading from his body to the Theater of Mystery's exit. Due to the damage sustained onto Kazuki's body, not much information could be garnered from examining it. At most, they could at least verify that what the Stanczyk File had said about his bones were true but…

"Are there really no other clues we can find revolving around Kazuki's murder?" Alisa grimaced, looking a tad disappointed.

She was growing more and more anxious.

The thought that they wouldn't be able to find the truth over what had happened to Kazuki haunted her. She tightened her fist. Her gaze grew ever more defiant. There was no way she was going to let Kazuki's death be meaningless like this. Alisa knew that much would be an insult to the life that Kazuki once lived…

"Hey," Fábio noticed her frustrations. "We'll figure out what happened to Kazuki, alright? I promise."

Alisa fixed her glasses.

"Where were you this entire morning?" Alisa simply asked.

"E-Eh?" Fábio blinked. "A-Alisa? Are you asking me for… my alibi?"

"Answer the question, Fábio," Alisa glanced at her pocket watch. "You have approximately five minutes and 24 seconds to do so."

"B-Before what?" Fábio asked.

"Five minutes and 20 seconds," Alisa timed.

"A-Ah, okay, okay!" Fábio did not like the stress of hearing a timer countdown like that.

She hasn't done something like this in a while now has she?

"Well, this morning…" Fábio twirled a lock of his ringleted hair. "I woke up as I usually did in the Séance Room, met up with Kikuko, and then went through our Morning Meeting together."

Fábio frowned.

"Which, by the way, not too many people actually ended up attending," Fábio said.

"Who was there at the Morning Meeting?" Alisa asked.

"Aside from me and Kikuko?" Fábio began. "There was Manon, Mara, and Yumi. Though, apparently Mara and Manon had been in the Dining Hall all night."

That piqued Alisa's interest.

"Mara and Manon were in the Dining Hall all night?" Alisa fixed her glasses. "Why?"

"According to them, the lights were off last night," Fábio recalled the accounts Mara gave regarding their adventures in the last chapter. "Pitch dark. So, no one was able to see anything. In order to stop whoever was plotting to do something, they navigated their way into the Breaker Room…"

"The Breaker Room?" Alisa blinked. "Why there?"

Right.

Despite everyone knowing about the existence of a Breaker Room, not many knew about what was inside, courtesy of Aidan and Roderick. Even Fábio wasn't exactly knowledgeable on the components of the Breaker Room but…

"Well, there's a fuse box inside the Breaker Room," Fábio revealed. "Saw it one time during a Hide and Seek round. And based on what Mara told us… two switches had been turned off."

"Two switches?" Alisa asked.

"The Light Switch, hence why all the lights were out," Fábio listed. "And the Safety Switch."

"A… Safety Switch?" Alisa furrowed her eyebrows. "Why… would a haunted house have that? And what does it actually do?"

"I don't know," Fábio shook his head. "But as far as morning goes, that's exactly where I was. After getting food, I went to go to the bathroom, and then the Body Discovery Jingles played. And now…"

He grimaced.

"Here we are," he muttered.

"I see…" Alisa placed her pocket watch away. "Well, I suppose there's some validity in that four minute and 36 second alibi you gave."

"W-Was it really that long?" Fábio chuckled sheepishly.

"Indeed," Alisa nodded.

Whether or not that was an achievement to be proud of or not, Fábio didn't know. He was at least glad that it was enough to knock him off her suspect list. For now, at least. The figure skater stuffed his hands in his pockets, feeling a little shameful for having to take his turn to ask his question.

"Now… what about you?" Fábio asked.

"Excuse me?" Alisa raised an eyebrow.

"W-Well, I just thought that since I gave you my alibi, it's only fair for you to go and give me yours, right?" Fábio chuckled sheepishly.

The look she gave him confirmed the worry he felt over having asked this question. If she reacted negatively to what Yumi said, the implications that Fábio made when he asked his was bound to get him on her shit list.

"You do realize you are pretty much accusing me of killing Kazuki, right?" Alisa raised an eyebrow.

"No one's saying you did," Fábio shook his head. "But given how we don't really have much to go off on here, I thought maybe your recollection of events could… help?"

Alisa narrowed her eyes for a moment before she fixed her glasses. She seemed to accept that as an answer. Whew. What a sigh of relief that was.

"If that's all you want from me…" Alisa began.

She glanced away, pain forming over her face.

"I… I think I was the last one to see Kazuki alive," Alisa simply said.

"You were?" Fábio blinked. "When?"

"Last night," Alisa revealed. "We were in the Photo-Op, talking about… personal things."

Alisa cleared her throat.

"But that was last night and when I woke up this morning…" Alisa frowned. "He was gone. And it was shortly after the first Body Discovery Jingle that I left the Photo-Op and found…"

She shifted her gaze toward Kazuki's corpse.

"So, in other words, you were in the Photo-Op throughout this entire time," Fábio noted. "Why so long? Did you—"

"Oversleep?" Alisa simply nodded. "Indeed. It certainly helps when you're not in a room that uses a screaming woman to wake you up every morning."

Fair enough.

While Alisa didn't exactly have an alibi, Fábio wasn't certain that this was the killer he was looking for. Since this Natasha person died in the same manner Kazuki did, it pointed to the possibility of one killer having done the deed of killing both. And if that possibility was true… there would be no way it could be Alisa who did the deed… right?

"Sorry that I had to ask you this by the way," Fábio looked down. "I know it's probably…"

"Don't worry about it," Alisa shook her head. "If anything, I do believe I may have… overreacted when it came to certain comments being made."

She glanced away, pained.

"I just… miss him so much," was all the clockmaker could say.

Fábio kept that somber look over his face.

Honestly, he missed him too.

Because compared to the rest of them, he had to agree that he was the best of them here…

---

(Ballroom)

Manon stood in front of Beauté's corpse, eyes wavering in fright over what had become of someone so full of life.

This wasn't the first time she's seen a dead body.

She's seen the aftermath of Hope Thornton and Mister Alvin Tetch being burned to a crisp. She's seen her own friend, Emmeline, as a cold lifeless husk. Alina smashed by rubble. Riku with a bullet in his head. Daisuke cooked and battered and eaten alive. And now…

Her opinion of Beauté Morose wasn't exactly a positive one.

Manon was definitely among those who agreed that Beauté Morose was a menace when it came to the setting that they were in. But now that she was actually dead. Now that her body had appeared, broken and lifeless. It was almost sad seeing her like this now…

She thought back to Beauté's Stanczyk File.

Or rather, Natasha Villeray's Stanczyk File.

Natasha Villeray, huh?

Whether or not that was her real name or not, Manon couldn't be too sure. Beauté Morose was someone who lived for the mystery. So she wouldn't be entirely surprised if she kept her name a mystery too.

Sentiments aside, solving what had happened to her was the key to survival.

And Manon was going to do just that…

…

In comparison to Kazuki's crime scene, there were quite a lot of things for the French actress to check out in Beauté's.

The first thing the French actress took note of was what seemed to be a metal club sitting right beside the body. A relatively large metal club with studs endorned on it. And when Manon tried to pick it up…

"Urgh!" Manon gritted her teeth. "Oh la la~ It's… It's…"

…She failed miraculously.

She panted.

With whatever strength she had, she couldn't pick up the metal club. She tried again. A hefty heave with a counter of one…

Two…

Three…

Ugh.

Yeah no.

It did budge, don't get her wrong. But to actually carry it around…?

"Having trouble there, Levesque?"

Issac and Kikuko walked over to Manon, their curiosity piquing over what she was struggling to carry. The French actress acknowledged them with pants and nods as she stepped to the side for the two to see for themselves.

"Oui," Manon nodded. "I do believe I may have found what ze murder weapon was."

"What… this… metal club?" Issac raised an eyebrow.

"Not just any metal club," Kikuko shook her head. "A kanabo."

"Quoi?" Manon turned to Kikuko, confused.

"A kanabo," Kikuko closed her eyes as she began to explain. "At least, that is what we call it in Japanese. It was the weapon often used by the samurai back in Feudal Japan. In classic Japanese mythology, it was the weapon of choice for the Oni, demons that possess superhuman strength, who utilized them to crush their prey."

"So, in other words, we're assuming that the killer Dead By Daylight'd the hell out of Morose?" Issac couldn't help but chuckle. "What a way to go, right Isolde?"

Didn't know he was a certified DBD player, huh!

"Did someone mention the Oni?"

Newcomer Roderick and Yukihiko joined the chat, the former of which looking downright terrified over what he had just overheard. The latter on the other hand looked more or less annoyed that everyone was apparently sharing ghost stories rather than investigating…

"Ah Cutler," Issac smiled. "Yuno. You missed the history lesson. Courtesy of Professor Unmei, herself."

"It wasn't a history lesson," Kikuko folded her arms. "I was just correcting what you thought was a simple metal club."

"Hey, doesn't kanabo literally mean 'metal club' in English?" Issac pointed out.

"S-So what if it does?" Kikuko looked embarrassed. "Kanabo is so much cooler sounding."

"Why are we talking about this, anyway?" Yukihiko folded his arms. "I thought we were supposed to be investigating."

"Oh, oui, we are mais…" Manon gestured to the kanabo sitting on the ground. "…It just so happens zat ze possible murder weapon is a little too difficult to hold."

Yukihiko raised an eyebrow, glancing toward the kanabo.

Then, he smirked.

Heh.

He was going to be the judge of that. Stepping forward to the kanabo, he kept two hands against the grip of the weapon and prepared to lift it. But it was just like Manon had said. It really was difficult to wield, let alone hold. His smirk faltered. Now, he looked frustrated as he tried his darnedest to try to lift up the weapon properly.

After a few minutes, he finally gave up.

"I suppose you weren't kidding," Yukihiko muttered. "This weapon truly is difficult to carry around, let alone wield."

"Hey, Cutler," Issac suddenly called out.

"A-Aye?" Roderick blinked.

"Think you can lift this baby real quick?" Issac asked. "I want to check something."

"Uh, aye, matey," Roderick gave a simple nod.

He stepped up, pulling up his sleeves like he was getting to lift Thor's hammer.

Yukihiko, raising an eyebrow over Issac's random suggestion, lowered how much of the weapon he was able to carry and allowed the deep sea fisherman to have his turn. Something in the child caregiver pondered whether or not Roderick simply agreed as an excuse to simply show off for his sake. Because if he was… gag.

Stepping in front of the kanabo, Roderick spat against the palm of his hands— why do people do that anyway? It's gross and disgusting and leaves germs on whatever they're touching after —and lifted up the kanabo.

"Aye," Roderick had to agree as he lifted it with both hands. "It be a little heavy but… It be not too much of a problem for me."

Compared to Manon and Yukihiko, he was able to do it quite fine. Though there did seem to be something on Roderick's mind, Issac turned to Yukihiko, a sly smile across his face.

"Well, now this is what you call the strength of a true man, yeah, Yuno?" Issac chuckled.

"Oh, get over yourself," Yukihiko rolled his eyes.

Manon wasn't the least bit surprised that someone like Roderick could lift the kanabo, given his strength. But a murder weapon that was tough to carry for everyone else? Whoever this killer was had to be as strong as Roderick in that case. Strong enough to lift and wield this kanabo as a murder weapon.

She watched Roderick slowly put down the weapon.

For a moment, she could've sworn she detected fear in his eyes. As if…

"Well, now that we played along with this charade, I suppose we can get back to the actual investigations, hm?" Yukihiko muttered. "Roderick, honey. Could you come with me for a second? I need to ask you a few questions."

"A-Aye?" Roderick blinked. "U-Uh, I mean, aye aye!"

Sure enough, Yukihiko led Roderick to a different part of the Ballroom for a private chat. But if Manon didn't know any better, he probably wanted nothing to do with her, Kikuko, and Issac's newly formed trio. If anything, he was pretty much placing the bigger task of investigating Beauté's body right on them. Something that Issac didn't seem to mind, Kikuko was a little annoyed by, and Manon was just… disappointed.

Seriously.

What happened in Yukihiko's life to make him so… entitled?

…

Ignoring Yukihiko's attitude and refocusing on the investigation, Manon took note of another key piece of evidence that was left by Beauté's body: a glass object left behind in nothing more than shattered pieces.

"Quoi?" Manon blinked. "Now what is zis?"

She reached down to pick up a piece—

"Geez, did no one teach you to not pick up random glass from the floor with your bare hands?" Issac rubbed the back of Isolde's body with a sigh.

"Ah!" Manon realized what he meant as she stopped midway from picking up an especially sharp piece on the floor.

She looked down, meekly.

"W-Well I guess not, heh," Manon couldn't help but sheepishly laugh.

"But then again…" Issac reached down and picked up a bigger, rounder piece of the glass anyway. "…Some pieces don't look to be that dangerous to hold either."

"Q-Quoi?!" Manon looked at the toymaker, surprised.

"What was the point of saying that if you were just going to pick up a piece anyway?" Kikuko questioned.

"Hey, can't a guy have his fun?" Issac smiled, before looking toward his toy caterpillar. "You thought it was funny, right Isolde?"

Isolde said nothing.

"Anyway," Kikuko walked up to the scattered pieces on the floor and slowly eyed each one. "From the looks of these glass pieces, they are in good enough condition for us to try to piece them together to see what they once were."

"Ah, like a jigsaw puzzle, Madame?" Manon beamed.

"Exactly," Kikuko smiled.

"Great idea, Unmei," Issac smiled, squatting down to hand her the piece he had grabbed. "All broken objects used to be an object at some point, am I right?"

No one responded. But still, Issac invited himself to the puzzle portion of the Investigation. As he did, he made sure to help Manon and Kikuko slowly piece the shards of glass together to see what exactly it would've made. With every piece slipping onto one another perfectly, Issac couldn't help but smile widely.

"Ah man, I haven't had fun with jigsaw puzzles since… never," Issac chuckled. "Boring waste-of-time toys, the lot of them."

"Ah non, zat sounds sad, Monsieur Santiago," Manon blinked. "It was always a fun zing to do when I was young."

"I didn't mind them myself," Kikuko shrugged as she fitted a smaller piece within a large piece.

She remembered Issac telling her that he wasn't like most children who found enjoyment in meaningless things like recess, watching TV or all those other things. Him not finding enjoyment in jigsaw puzzles was easily understandable. But it only made her question… How did someone with literally no enjoyment of their own childhood end up as an Ultimate Toymaker?

"And, voila!" Manon beamed. "C'est fini!"

She never removed her hand off of the finished product, because for starters, they didn't have glue. So, the moment she removed their hand was the moment the pieces were going to slide off of one another and then they'd have to restart all over again. Second, the finished product itself wasn't without its own lack of tiny pieces meant to fit in certain creases and cracks, so obviously it wasn't perfect. But what they had here… It was better than nothing.

"Huh, it's some sort of… sphere?" Kikuko blinked.

"A glass sphere?" Issac hummed. "Now where have we seen that before?"

"Oui, zere is no disco ball in ze Ballroom last I remember," Manon pointed out.

Issac realized Manon was a hopeless case in this topic so he turned to Kikuko instead. He looked her with a cryptic smile, as if he had already figured out what this glass sphere was and was wondering Kikuko did as well. Like he was testing her…

"Whatever it is," Kikuko closed her eyes and bowed. "I'm sure we'll figure it out during the Trial. But someone do mark it down in our Evidence application."

"Oui!" Manon released her hands from the glass sphere to grab her eTicket.

As expected, all the pieces slid off of one another until it was back into nothing but scattered glass.

"I could've done it myself, y'know," Issac sighed.

"A-Ah…" Manon smiled sheepishly. "W-Whoopsies?"

At least they know what it used to be now!

…

Shrinking back out of embarrassment, Manon decided to scan Beauté's body for any more peculiar things. Luckily for her, there was one thing that stood out: a chain of some sort wrapped around the body's waist. And as she placed her hands over the chain, she slowly examined each ends of it, noting its peculiar characteristics:

On one end of the chain was some sort of iron weight. Not like it was heavy, especially not compared to the kanabo. But on the other end was where things truly got strange. On the other end of the chain was what seemed to be a broken chain link.

Broken.

As in bent and as if it had been snapped off or something. However else I'm supposed to describe a broken chain link.

"Oh la la," Manon mumbled. "What is zis for?"

"You're just finding all kinds of evidence, aren't you Levesque?" Issac smiled. "What's that, anyway? A chain?"

"Oui," Manon nodded. "It was wrapped around Madame… Morose's body. C-Could it be zat she was…"

"Tied up and brutally killed to the point where her bones broke?" Issac questioned. "It would make sense considering how many enemies she made."

"Which was everyone," Kikuko pointed out.

She somberly glanced back down toward Beauté's body, still feeling a source of pity involved with the mysterious Ultimate's unfortunate demise.

"But still, to pin her down and do… this to her?" Kikuko asked. "It's… beyond cruel. Whoever did it would be no better than Beauté herself."

"Well said," Issac simply nodded.

Kikuko walked toward Manon and decided to take a closer look at the chain. She noticed how there was a broken chain link as well as an iron weight. She noticed how it was most certainly wrapped around Beauté's waist. And she noticed just how long it was…

Her flared a ghostly blue as an idea was forming in her head.

"Is zere some zing wrong with it?" Manon asked. "Besides ze broken link at ze end and… well… whatever ze iron weight is?"

"That's just it," Kikuko frowned. "The iron weight at the end… it's… familiar. In fact, this whole entire chain seems familiar but…"

"Do we even know how a chain link can end up like that, by the way?" Issac asked, gesturing toward the broken chain link.

"Je ne sais pas," Manon shook her head. "It's… very strange, non?"

"Isolde'll say," Issac had to agree.

Kikuko never responded. She continued to look at the chain, trying to wrap her head around where exactly she's seen such a thing before. A chain. An iron weight at the end. It was all so familiar. Maybe… Maybe if she had the full picture, she'd finally know what exactly it was. Because until then…

Whatever this chain was and its purpose would only have to be uncovered during the Trial.

---

(Hallway)

"Oh, you guys are done. Did you find anything?"

The door closed as soon as Fábio and Alisa entered the Hallway.

Both of them looked disappointed that they didn't find anything more inside the Theater of Mystery. Alisa especially, but we knew that. As of now, regrouping with the other three was probably the best scenario here. Folding her arms and stepping forward, Mara raised an eyebrow.

"Judging by those faces, I'm guessing… not much," Mara noted.

"B-Bambina!" Yumi rushed over toward Alisa. "Ah am so sorry fer what ah had said back dere! Ah meant no ill intent! Ah swear! Ah just…"

"Yumi, it's fine," Alisa sighed. "I was just… on edge because of Kazuki. That's all."

"But still ah…" Yumi wanted to argue but instead took off her hat and placed it over her chest. "...Will ya ever forgive me?"

"There's nothing to be forgiven," Alisa shook her head. "Just bad circumstances leading to heated tensions. Again, it's fine, Yumi. You don't have to beat yourself up over it."

Mara gave Yumi an 'I told you so' look.

"Whoa, Mara!" Fábio blinked. "Your foot! Why is it…?"

"Huh?" Mara glanced down.

He gestured toward her feet, noting the dark and dried stain of blood on it. When the figure skater put attention to it, everyone else naturally freaked out. Alisa widened her eyes. Aidan backed away from her instinctively. Yumi looked concerned. Mara on the other hand… didn't seem to have much of a reaction to it.

"B-Bambina!" Yumi exclaimed. "A-Are ya… Are ya alright?!"

"Yeah, Fábio's right, like that's way too much blood for one single foot!" Aidan exclaimed.

"That's because it's not blood," Mara sighed. "I'm surprised it took everyone this long to notice it now but… it's just wine from the Breaker Room. Remember? The place Manon and I went to when the lights were out?"

"The lights were what?" Aidan blinked.

"Right, there were wine barrels weren't there?" Fábio recalled. "But how did so much of it get on your foot like that?"

"Well, someone left behind a huge puddle of wine at the scene," Mara shrugged. "I stepped in it because it was dark. And now you have this conversation we're having about it…"

"I guess that makes sense," Aidan rubbed the back of his neck. "Those wine barrels aren't exactly the best things to be pouring out drinks. Even I got some on me last time I was there."

He showed off his red-stained shoes as Exhibit A.

"But even so, you did get some of it on the floor," Alisa fixed her glasses.

Mara furrowed her eyebrows.

"What are you talking about?" the karate master asked. "The wine I stepped in was last night. The stains should've dried up by then."

"Well, if that's the case, then we're definitely dealing with a whole other red liquid here," Alisa gestured toward the corner of the blood-red carpet draped over the Hallway floor.

In the top-right corner of the blood-red carpet (top being the part closest to the Theater of Mystery), it looked as if a piece of it had been torn. What was most peculiar were the small droplets of blood that surrounded it. Small droplets of dried blood that really did resemble the dried wine stains on Mara's feet.

"A torn carpet that's torn and has some red liquid, most likely blood, surrounding it," Fábio noted.

"Well, ah'll be damned," Yumi had to say. "Ya really found da jackpot of clues, bambina."

A torn carpet with blood?

Why was that there?

And could this blood have any relation to Kazuki's death?

---

(Ballroom)

"What did ye want to talk to me about?"

Roderick was admittedly excited when Yukihiko had pulled him aside just to speak to him and to him only. They hadn't had a proper chat since the day Yukihiko renounced his assistance. And although it stung at the time, Roderick was… willing to look past it. After all, the only reason why Yukihiko disliked his company was for the same reason his father disliked his passion for the literary arts. So maybe… just maybe if he could prove himself… he could—

"Did you kill her?" Yukihiko asked.

"A-Aye?" Roderick blinked.

He slowly realized what the child caregiver had just asked him.

"I– I mean, n-nay, nay!" Roderick shook his head frantically. "I be not a killer! This sea witch death be a surprise to me as it be to everyone else!"

"Is that so?" Yukihiko didn't seem convinced.

"W-Why did ye think it be me anyway?" Roderick gulped.

"Don't act like you don't know," Yukihiko couldn't help but smirk. "I've been watching you. The way you were acting all day. Looking around like you did something you don't want anyone else knowing. If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were the one who killed Beauté. Which you already know I do…"

"A-Ah, that be…" Roderick blinked.

He shook his head.

"Nay, nay, nay!" Roderick declared. "Ye be getting it all wrong! I be not the killer! The reason I be shifty and paranoid is… is…"

He could feel Yukihiko's paternal stare burning into his pride. The child caregiver was expecting an answer, and undoubtedly a good one. Something reasonable to work with. But Roderick knew that was impossible. Because what he had to say wasn't going to go well with the Yukihiko that tossed him aside due to his annoying insistence on monsters existing…

"Ah, forget it," Roderick glanced away, ashamed. "Ye wouldn't believe me anyway."

"Oh?" Yukihiko tilted his head. "Why? Is it because you saw a spirit or something?"

"Exactly!" Roderick blurted out.

Pause.

"...You're right," Yukihiko deadpanned. "I wouldn't have believed you anyway."

The child caregiver decided he had heard enough and turned to move to a different part of the Ballroom. He had little patience for such detours, especially one as fantastical as ghosts existing. Seriously, childish behavior.

"W-Wait, Yuki!" Roderick exclaimed. "Ye haven't heard me entire tale yet! I be serious! I saw a spirit! A ghostly spirit! And I be thinkin… they be the one who killed that sea witch!"

"Yes, because ghosts can go and kill people with stuff like a kanabo and whatnot," Yukihiko rolled his eyes.

"Aye!" Roderick looked serious. "They can!"

Another pause.

"Oh my God," Yukihiko scoffed and left.

Roderick knew this would've been the reaction Yukihiko would've had in regards to his own accounts. He didn't blame him. This would've been exactly the reaction anyone would've had in regards to the kooky claims he dispelled. Yukihiko was just someone to took to seriousness and people acting their own age way too seriously. Honestly, it hurt…

"Gee, she's playing hard to get, isn't she?"

"Z-ZOINKS?!" Roderick jumped, noting an intrigued Stanczyk poking his head into his own affairs. "N-Nay! Why are ye getting up into me business?!"

"Can't a best friend support another best friend's endeavors?" Stanczyk grinned.

He patted the fisherman on the shoulder.

"I mean, a big strong man like you can easily get a woman like that," Stanczyk beamed. "She's smart. No nonsense. A little mean. But hey, as the kiddies say, 'You can fix her!' Right?"

Was… Stanczyk really supporting him in this?

Wouldn't be the first time. Roderick remembered how Stanczyk was the reason why he even got to share a dance with Yukihiko. Despite being a jester who was forcing them into this twisted game, admittedly, he was definitely a lot nicer and dare he say, tolerable than that pesky hyena fish.

Roderick felt another comforting pat on his shoulder.

"Think about it after the Trial!" Stanczyk grinned.

"Eh?" Roderick blinked.

The door to the Ballroom suddenly opened.

"Because attention all playmates!" Stanczyk exclaimed, catching everyone's attention. "The time is here! The time to stop the Investigation and move on forward to the exciting Playhouse Trial!"

"Z-Zat's it?" Manon blinked. "Mais, we barely found any zing!"

"Well, that's too bad!" Stanczyk grinned. "Best hope the other half of my best friends found some useful things! Otherwise…"

He started to cry.

"...Th-This… Th-This may be the end of all of my best friends…" Stanczyk whimpered. "W-WAHHHHHHHHH! How sad would that be?!"

Pretty damn sad.

For once in an Investigation, none of them felt exactly ready to head straight for the Trial. The lack of evidence truly spoke wonders for how their case was going to go. If anything, if they do make it out of this next Trial alive… it was going to be a miracle for sure.

---

(Grand Lobby)

"Geez, these doors are annoying…"

It was the first thing Aidan had said as the group entered the Grand Lobby, shortly after the door opened.

Waiting on the first floor below were the rest of the playmates, all looking uncertain whether or not they were ready to solve this case. Comparatively speaking, it should be the ones in charge of Kazuki's murder that should be uncertain considering they got mostly nothing to work with, but that's just how it was sometimes.

Manon rushed over to Alisa; her face sympathetic.

"Ah, Madame Zachary!" Manon exclaimed. "I… I am sorry for what happened to… Monsieur Nobukatsu."

Alisa shook her head.

"Don't be," her face spiked with determination. "The only one who should be sorry is whoever did that to him. And I'll find out who it was that did it. That's a promise."

Manon could see that Alisa meant business. Despite the Double Murder Case rules, she had to agree with the clockmaker's philosophies. Finding out who killed both Kazuki and Beauté was the way to do this Trial. The desire for the truth is what they need to solve this case. The truth of what happened to both Kazuki and Beauté and why it had to happen. And speaking of Beauté…

"So, about dis Natasha Villeray?" Yumi blinked. "Who is dat anyway?"

"Well, look around and see who's missing from the roster," Issac gestured to the crowd of 10 playmates.

It took a bit of mental math for Yumi to finally realize who was missing.

"A-Ah, ya don't mean–" Yumi widened her eyes.

"Surprising, right?" Issac chuckled. "Yep. We found Beauté Morose's body in the Ballroom. The name is… a little confusing but five people including me can confirm that she's dead."

"Ah, thank goodness!" Yumi sighed in relief.

Issac raised an eyebrow.

"...E-Er, ah mean, it's… so sad?" Yumi blinked.

She was really saying all the wrong things today, wasn't she?

Common Yumi L.

Regardless, news of Beauté's death spread like wildfire amongst the five that investigated Kazuki's death. For someone who seemed like she would do just fine in a game like this, she died a lot earlier than anyone really expected. In a way, it fits with Beauté's unpredictable nature. No one knew what she was going to do next. And no one especially knew that she was going to be the one that bit the dust this early…

"Geez, I still can't believe Beauté ended up dead of all people," Fábio mumbled to Kikuko, quietly. "Since you were there at the crime scene was she…?"

He trailed off, making sure no one else who was overhearing would pick up to what he meant.

"She was indeed there," Kikuko responded in the same tone. "However, due to the limited number of people, I had Eiji talk to her for me."

"Oh great!" Fábio smiled. "With Eiji on our side, we should be able to get loads of information, right?"

On cue, Eiji had manifested beside Kikuko, a neutral expression on his face.

"Hold that thought," Kikuko told Fábio before turning to Eiji. "Well, Eiji? Did you get any information out of her?"

"Actually, yeah!" Eiji smiled. "She told me to pass along a message. Simply put 'go figure it out yourself'."

Eiji lowered his head.

"Agh, I'm sorry, sis," Eiji frowned. "I really tried but she was freakier dead than she was alive! And she went on a whole tangent about us cheating and—"

"Don't worry Eiji," Kikuko sighed. "I kind of expected this."

"Y-You did?" Eiji blinked.

"Well, of course," Kikuko nodded. "It's Beauté. She was never going to give us information that easily. I wanted to ask anyway just in case."

The shrine priestess was clearly disappointed, but she made sure to give Eiji at least an appreciative look.

"Though, thank you for trying, Eiji," Kikuko smiled.

Eiji blinked.

Then, he bashfully looked down.

"Y-Yeah, anytime, sis!" Eiji simply said.

…

It took a bit for Stanczyk to arrive but when he did, there was a sorrowful look over his face as he trudged into the Grand Lobby. He had obviously been crying, which was strange because just moments prior he was doing just fine for someone making sure a group's Investigation Period went smoothly.

"Two best friends… dead…" Stanczyk whimpered. "Two best friends… dead… It's so… It's so…"

And here comes the waterworks.

"SAAAAAAAD!" Stanczyk wailed. "Th-This is so unfair! How could two best friends be dead?! I would've been fine with just the one! It's not fair! It's not fair! It'snotfairnotfairnotfairnotfairnotfair—"

"Can you just open the elevator door now?" Yukihiko asked, impatiently. "You're seriously dragging this much longer than it needs to be!"

Yeah! I'm already way past the 20K runtime!

"Of course, best friend!" Stanczyk stopped whining and shifted to his cheerful smile. "One elevator coming right up!"

He gestured toward the golden statue of Alexander slowly rising up and lifting itself off of the ground. A clear pattern was in place. Just like the Lady Radiance and Marcus Avventira statue from before, the Alexander statue revealed an elevator right underneath it. And with one single gesture, Stanczyk allowed the playmates to enter in first.

"All aboard, best friends!" Stanczyk grinned.

"Before we do," Aidan raised his hand. "What about food? Some of us haven't eaten so—"

A random food tray was tossed straight toward his head, landing right into the palm of his hands. Dazed, the track star gave a thumbs-up.

"Ah, thanks!" Aidan goofily smiled.

---

The 10 playmates gathered inside the elevator.

To contrast the ancient Marcus Avventira elevator and the flashy Lady Radiance elevator, this elevator was more so majestic and grand if anything but still harbored that same eerie feeling of staying inside a haunted house.

As the elevator slowly descended, Aidan could do nothing but munch of his food.

"Wow, you were right, Roderick, buddy," Aidan smiled. "This food is really good! Ahhh, how I missed what it was like to eat!"

"Speak for yourself," Yukihiko frowned, folding his arms.

"You can't blame anyone but yourself, Yuno," Issac shrugged. "You were the only one who refused to eat. Saying stuff like it's a betrayal to the children or whatever."

"And was I wrong?" Yukihiko scoffed.

"Seeing how you're hungry and the rest of us aren't?" Issac blinked before slyly smiling. "Yeah!"

And this is why Yukihiko wasn't such a big fan of this hypocrite-outing toymaker.

"Oh, we're here!" Stanczyk excitedly declared.

The elevator stopped.

…

And slowly, the elevator's wooden-like doors opened…

---

(Trial Grounds)

…to the Trial Grounds.

From the grand traffic-jammed streets of Los Angeles/Hollywood/Beverly Hills to the ancient ruins of a typical Marcus Avventira movie to what the Trial Grounds were now: a ghoulish looking mansion-type setting that looked abandoned and creepily out of place.

The walls now had paintings of one of the three main characters of 'Gold House': Alexander, Empress, and Omen. In the middle of the 16 podiums that surrounded it, was now a hanging chandelier that swayed back and forth, replacing the ancient treasure that was once there. And finally, to the side were Monoyena and Stanczyk, sitting in a couch that looked much fancier than the previous couches they had situated themselves in during the Trial.

In terms of the podium arrangement, it looked like this now:

Aidan, a portrait of Alina's face being crossed off by conductor batons forming an 'X', Alisa, a portrait of Daisuke's face being crossed off by chicken drumsticks forming an 'X', a portrait of Emmeline's face being crossed off by a butterfly with an 'X' pattern on it, Fábio, Issac, a portrait of Kazuki's face being crossed off by two arms forming an 'X', Kikuko, Manon, Mara, a portrait of Beauté's face being crossed off by two knives forming an 'X', a portrait of Riku's face being crossed off by syringes forming an 'X', Roderick, Yukihiko, Yumi, and finally the couch in-between Yumi and Aidan.

Geez, that podium arrangement is getting longer by the minute…

"Ahoy there, fuckers!" Monoyena called out.

He was already waiting for them inside the Trial Grounds, and he made sure to show his delighted excitement by simply waving his paw with that toothy grin of his.

"Ya wankers already know the gist," Monoyena picked his teeth with his Barbie Blade. "Welcome back to the Playhouse Trial. The most anticipated part of any good Killing Game where ya get to find out which one of you wanks decided to pick off one of yer own."

Drool seeped from his jaw as his grin widened.

"Or at least in this case…" the hyena chuckled sinisterly. "...picked off two of yer own if yer feeling ballsy to solve two cases. Bwa… Bwahahahahahaha!"

"Why would anyone want to go ahead and kill two people like that?!" Stanczyk sobbed. "I-It's… I-It's so… I-It's so MEAN! W-WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"Yes, because it's not like we were coerced into sacrificing two people," Yukihiko scoffed. "That's just crazy talk."

"You're telling me!" Stanczyk sniffled.

The sarcasm clearly flew right over the jester's head… as expected from a grown adult acting like a child.

Yukihiko took a deep breath and let out a sigh.

Now wasn't the time to criticize the jester's childish antics.

Now was the time to figure out what had happened to two of their own: Beauté and Kazuki.

More specifically, Beauté, if the Double Murder Case rules were anything to go by.

That was the goal the remaining 10 playmates had to abide with now.

Finding out who the blackened of this case was…

Find out why they did it and how…

Find out the truth…

…

Aidan held onto one of his signature water bottles as tightly as possible, determined to catch/accuse the person he figured would be the best candidate for the culprit. Y'know, same old Aidan.

Alina was probably being tortured in Hell by Alexander into making good music or something. She gets no reaction panel.

Alisa was looking more determined than ever before; her hands were placed over her glasses, allowing the lens to reflect off of the candlelights from the chandelier. A look that said that she was going to do whatever it took… whatever it took to find out how and why Kazuki had to die…

Daisuke was probably being tortured in Hell by Omen into making chicken sandwiches or something. He gets no reaction panel.

Emmeline was probably one with the butterflies in Empress's garden… if she had a garden. She gets no reaction panel.

Fábio kept his hands in his pockets as he glanced around with that chilling look in his eyes. Figuring out what happened to two of the people they once knew wasn't going to be easy, but he was sure as hell going to try his damn hardest to solve this case.

Issac brushed his hair to the side as he caressed Isolde. He seemed pretty confident with his chances in this Trial, though he did sneak quite a number of glances toward Kikuko. All with his sly smile over his face. Eugh.

Kazuki was somewhere, deceased and rotting. He gets no reaction panel.

Kikuko lowered her head, giving her prayers to Seiryuu in hopes that it'll be a smoother Trial this time around. Given the fact that Part 2 of this Trial is currently 30K words, that prayer probably didn't get answered.

Manon looked nervous. The killer could be any one of them, but who? She was always nervous when it came to Trials but it was time Manon stopped being a mouse and started being a rat. She was going to do everything she could to help solve this mystery!

Mara kept her arms folded as she looked ever so present this time around. Usually, she'd slink in the back and let others do the work but after her heavy lifting in the first part of the last Trial, nah. Mara was in it to win it… for the sake of surviving this damn Killing Game.

Beauté was somewhere, deceased and rotting. She gets no reaction panel.

Riku was probably being tortured in Hell by Empress into having his own eyes getting cut off or something. He gets no reaction panel.

Roderick lowered his beanie. Based on what he said to Yukihiko before the Investigation Period abruptly ended, he was still a little nervous over something he had noticed last night. An apparent spirit. Whether or not that was true… Well, it most certainly remains to be seen!

Yukihiko glanced at his nails without a care in the world. His only mission this entire game was to take care of the children. Now that they are in the Trial phase, all Yukihiko can hope to do is wait for this farce of a Trial to quickly end. Saving the children was all that mattered to him…

Yumi lowered her white Stetson hat, solely out of respect for the loss of Kazuki and the fact that they were instructed to focus more on the first body discovered. It was unfair yes, but Yumi knew there was still a chance for them to find out the truth about what happened to Kazuki.

A chance for them to find out the truth about this entire case…

There was much to go through, but the 10 playmates knew they could do it…

They have to have that much hope in order to do it…

Because at the end of the day, if they got the blackened wrong, it was their heads on the line…

…

"Let's go, best friends!" Stanczyk cheered them on. "I know you kids can do it!"

Stanczyk tilted his head and leaned forward, his red eye glowing and his yellow plus-shaped eye sparking slightly. His voice distorted and his grin widened:

"aNd dOn'T aNy oF yOu dArE tHinK tO qUiT…"

---

DANGANRONPA: TWISTED TRAGEDY

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Ugh, I forgot how much I hated writing these XE As promised, here is the Investigation chapter and first official Deadly Life part for Chapter 3: House of 1000 Low Spirits! Quite a lot of reveals here and there! And also, definitely one of my favorite backstories to write for along with Monoyena's this chapter :D As always, still nervous about how it'll be but I think it'll also be quite a fun Trial :D

Trials are both kinda ready to go. Just need Otterplay to Beta read it to make sure the logic makes sense :D And to of course edit and add some scenes :0 Trial Part 2 is reaching 30K ughhhh.

Today's shoutout goes to... CandleFire54's Gold House! Man recently updated the story that this Chapter was based off of and yet I can't even read it? Grrrr...

Other than that, apologies to anyone if they think this is a relatively weaker Investigation chapter! But do let me know who you think killed Beauté Morose! Or rather... Natasha Villeray. Or whatever is going on with that. And while you're at it, forget about the Double Murder Case rules and let me know who you think killed Kazuki Nobukatsu as well :D

And as always, please let me know how I'm doing with these characters and what you thought about the chapter! Did you like it? Hate it? Think Beauté should've lived? To that, I say 'Hawk Tuah' :D Because as always, I love hearing everyone's thoughts about the chapter :D

In any case, you all know what time it is :D

Hope this Trial is good!

(Once again to my Corrupted Hope readers, hope you noticed something cool :D)

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Playmates Remaining: 10

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Aidan Brighton - The Ultimate Track Star [Omakin]

Alisa Zachary - The Ultimate Clockmaker [ExtraMeme]

Fábio Barbosa - The Ultimate Figure Skater [Rayy12]

Issac Santiago - The Ultimate Toymaker [oddlyillregular]

Kikuko Unmei - The Ultimate Shrine Priestess [WolfieRed23]

Manon Vivienne Levesque - The Ultimate Actress [Sempi]

Marabel "Mara" Garcia - The Ultimate Karate Master [Epifanio Therion]

Roderick Cutler - The Ultimate Deep Sea Fisherman [Orlando Butler]

Yukihiko Yuno - The Ultimate Child Caregiver [Weekaro]

Yumi Gundo - Ultimate Gunslinger [MrUtenaHolic]