Chapter 1 - Part 17
The old building's circuit breaker should be inside this office.
They probably have something to do with the outage, right?
Right... so we should check it out first.
So, those are the circuit breakers?
The power outage must have happened because they were tripped somehow...
Hmm, it doesn't look like someone did anything to it. Nothing else looks suspicious either...
Is it because they’re too high? I doubt any of us could reach them without standing on something...
Yeah, I totally agree... That's why it's so mysterious...
Well, during the blackout, I was panicking so bad I forgot about that, but...you're right. Even with a stepladder, there's no way you'd be able to reach that circuit breaker.
Which means, someone must have reset the breaker after the blackout. But who?
I did it!
...Gwaaaaaaah!? IT'S HERE!
You idiots had nooooo idea what to do about the blackout, so I'm the one who reset the circuit breaker.
My eyes work real good at night, so I have no trouble seeing in the dark.
Ah, by the way, I'm not the one who tripped the breaker. The killer did that, of course.
But...you’re so tiny. How did you reach it?
My body stretches.
I am a very elastic bear, you see.
...L-Liar!
I’m very serious. Do you wanna see it?
N-No thanks... Just imagining it makes me wanna puke.
...That's really disappointing. I consider it a special ability of mine.
Clearly you plebs can’t appreciate *real* talent. Uncultured swines, the lot of you! [leaves]
Wh-What the hell...? So he's the one who reset the breaker...
Well, in that case, I'm convinced. There's no way we'd be able to reach that.
But...how did the culprit trip the breakers in the first place?
If they weren’t able to do it manually, or install some kind of mechanism to do it for them, then...
...Eh?
This one is also set to 11:30.
It’s just the same as the one back in the main hall.
This... can’t be a coincidence.
I can already tell... You doubt me, correct?
Huh?
However, it does not surprise me...
An unexpected blackout occurred, and during that time, Byakuya was killed.
The circuit breaker is in this office... Naturally, I look suspicious since I was supposed to be here.
"Supposed" to be here...? Does that mean...?
So I was right... You weren't in the office.
...But why? Weren't you supposed to guard the circuit breaker and the duralumin case with all the weapons in it?
So...where'd you run off to on your own...?
Well...that is...
...Ugh!
Ugh...kh...!
Peko suddenly dropped down to one knee and began groaning.
A-Ah! Peko! What’s wrong!?
N-No... I am just not feeling too well... I apologize but... e-excuse me...
Peko... It appears the bathroom inside this old building is currently occupied, so...
I recommend either the hotel lobby or your cottage.
Tch...! It seems like I have a long road ahead of me...! [leaves]
Peko wobbled out of the office, cold sweat covering her face.
W-What happened to her? I hope she’s okay...
Hmm... It's kinda hard for me to say it myself. I already feel bad enough for Peko as it is...
Could it be that ‘time’? Well, that’s not something Nagito would consider...
I mean, is it cool? She didn't like...run away or something?
Cause, if she ran away, she's obviously the killer! I'm almost positive!
Jeez! I wouldn’t jump to conclusions so quickly!
So... isn’t Peko our killer?
What? No! Why do you think that!?
Well, she wandered off somewhere, even though she was supposed to be in the office.
When we were looking for Byakuya after the blackout, I went to the office right away, but...
When I got here...she was gone.
I shouldn't say this too loudly, or else Miss Sonia will yell at me...
Peko's probably the one who tripped the circuit breaker, and used the blackout to her advantage to kill Byakuya.
And don't you think she looks kind of ruthless, too? Like...an assassin, right?
I get your point, but you don’t have to be so rude about it!
Maybe we should check inside...just to be safe.
Sure, but I think it’s locked.
Byakuya had the key to this particular duralumin case with him...
Check it out, I brought it with me so there's no need to worry.
H-Huh!? You just swiped it without telling anyone!?
It's forbidden to tamper with the crime scene... But if we don't, we can't check inside this case, right?
...So I should open it.
He has a point, but still...!
*Click*
...See, it's open.
Forks and knives... some skewers and a wrench... and the portable stove. Everything is stuffed inside that little box.
But...it's not possible that the killer took anything from here... because the key to this case was inside the case Byakuya had with him.
Well, yeah...
Now then...I guess we're done with the office, don't you think so?
There doesn’t seem to be anything else around here...
Okay, we can leave.
It looks like we've pretty much finished looking around the building.
What should we do next?
How about we look inside Byakuya’s cottage?
...Why would we need to do that?
If it’s Byakuya’s cottage, there might be clues in there. We should check just in case.
Going inside a guy’s cottage sounds a bit embarrassing...
If it makes you uncomfortable, you don’t have to come.
...No, I’ll come.
All right, then let's get going! To Byakuya's cottage!
Um... What are you guys doing?
“What are you doing?", she asks. Ha! I have never heard a more foolish question in my life!
Um... We're just checking to see if we can get under the floor from here.
Why would you want to do that?
Who said it was futile? Who decided it was impossible? How did you know I cannot recover my earring!?
If it is possible to get under the floor, it'll change our understanding of the murder... I think.
So... I thought it was important to check it.
Under the floor, huh. I never considered thinking of it like that.
What do you mean?
Think back on the crime scene. The carpet I laid didn't reach the table where we found Byakuya's body, right?
And...the dining hall floor had huge gaps between the floorboards.
Are... are you saying the culprit could have stabbed Byakuya from *beneath* the floor!?
That's what I thought, so I'm trying to see if we can get under it from here...
...
Um... Did you find anything?
Hmmm...I don’t think it’s possible to get under the floor from outside.
The building is surrounded by firm fences, so there's no way to sneak under the floor from here.
Even so... I couldn't find a way to get under the floor from inside the building either.
Could there be a hidden door or something?
No. I don’t think so.
...Okay?
At any rate, it seems you can't get under the floor from outside the building. That's a relief.
You’re relieved? Why?
Because...if you could get under the floor from the outside, there'd only be one logical suspect.
The only person who didn't come to the party and also doesn't have an alibi.
Oh...Fuyuhiko...
I...suspected him, too. That's why I was checking to see if it's possible to get under the floor from outside.
Speaking of which... Not long after I began guarding the entrance...
Fuyuhiko came here.
Eh? He did?
...Huh? What happened, Fuyuhiko?
O-Oh hey... What are you doing here...? All alone at a place like this...?
I'm standing guard so Monokuma doesn't come inside.
Heh... How diligent of you...
You're not coming to the party?
Hell no, not even if you paid me... Parties are stupid. They make me wanna puke...
...You want to come to the party, right? Isn't that why you came here?
O-Of course not! I was just going for a damn walk!
What...? Do I have to report to you every time I wanna go for a fucking walk?!
No, it's not like that, but...
Then leave me alone...
And then... he just left.
Huh... Sounds like he wanted to join the party but chickened out last minute.
...
...He probably wants to be a part of the group, but he can't be honest about it..
He believes he's different from everyone else... That's why he's always alone.
...He's like the main character of an RPG. Have you played those before?
That’s one way to see it... though I think she’s treating him too nicely...
Even though we don't really know what he's thinking... I don't think we have any reason to doubt him.
That's a relief.
So...we still have no leads on the culprit?
That’s not good... Accusing someone sounds bad enough, but what happens if we don’t know who to suspect?
Well... I guess for now we should stick to the plan and head over to Byakuya's cottage.
As long as the probability is greater than zero...that will suffice.
I will most assuredly reclaim the Hell Hound Earring with my own two hands! [leaves]
