Chapter 1 - Part 19
...
Hmm, just as I thought.
It seems there's no way to get under the floor from inside this old building...maybe.
Yeah, just like Nagito said...
I guess that means Gundham will have to give up on his stupid earring.
Hajime, I trust you’ve been looking at those photos?
Yeah, I have.
That’s good... I’d be really angry if you were slacking off.
Well, you don’t need to get mad. Just take a look.
Like we discussed, I looked at the two photos you took during the party...
...and tried to judge where everyone was standing.
Here. I made a map.
Not everyone was captured in the photos, so I had to guess a couple things...
I see...
So Byakuya really was standing pretty far away from that table...
It doesn’t seem plausible for him to have moved all that way in pitch darkness...
What’s this? There’s a line stretching from the table we found Byakuya under.
Uh...that’s the tabletop lamp. I drew its cord, just in case it would be useful.
The lamp’s cord...?
So? Was that any good?
I appreciate the effort, but I still can’t say for sure.
I have a feeling we might have snagged a potential clue... or this was all just a waste of time.
No, I don’t think it was a waste.
Eh?
It’s not clear to me yet, but...
As I was drawing it, I just knew there was a clue hidden somewhere.
...An extremely important clue.
If that’s the case, I’ll definitely try to keep it in mind.
By the way, here’s your camera back.
...Ah, thanks.
Um... If you'd like, I can tell you a little bit of what I want to say.
If you could, I’d really appreciate it...
Um... I tried, within reason, to perform an autopsy on Byakuya's body...
A-And I discovered... that there were several puncture wounds around Byakuya's chest and abdominal region...
D-Deep wounds... deep enough to reach his lungs and internal organs...
*sob* ...It can be assumed that... a very thin, sharp object around... 5 mm in diameter...
Was... used to... stab... him... over... and over... again... which is what I... belie...ve...
...Ugh... Waaaaaaaaaaaah!
Mikan!? Are you alright!?
I'm sooooooorryyyyyy...! Talking about it made me sad!
I-It’s fine, really. I think I caught most of what you were trying to say.
Ugh... Ughhh... I-I'm sorrrrrrrrrry...!
5 millimeters in diameter, she said...
But... isn’t that very thin? That’s like an icepick...
Alrighty guys, it's finally time!
That's right. It's time for the long-awaited class trial!
Now then, I shall tell you all the meeting place.
At the central island of Jabberwock Island, there is a mountain with my adorable face carved into it. That, my friends, is Monokuma Rock!
Once you're there, please proceed to the underground by taking the elevator located at the secret entrance.
Puhuhu, I'll see you soon!
...Huh?
Hey, what the heck is that mountain!? Wh-When did that get here!?
That story...that story might be true after all.
There might be an enormous organization involved in all this...
You mean... what Byakuya said before, right?
Byakuya...we still needed his knowledge...
Tch...! I still can't believe he's dead!
Byakuya, Byakuya, Byakuya, Byakuya...
...
What...happened to Gundham and Fuyuhiko?
N-Now that you mention it...it appears they aren't here yet...
Ah, I know! They probably ran away!
Aw hell naw! There's no way I'd let them escape, you know!
Look! I dragged this one back over here!
I-I'm tellin' you, let me go!
Hey now, if you keep acting violent, I might just eat you up.
Hey Fuyuhiko! Why did you keep us waiting?
What? I was just sitting in my room, contemplating whether or not I should bother coming to this stupid thing..
Tch... Who the fucks cares about this anyway?
What the hell? How can he say that!?
The rest of us were working our asses off investigating, and he didn’t even bother turning up...!
Mahiru, don’t try anything...
Tch...! Dumbass...!
...And I guess we're waitin' for Gundham?
...I am right here.
Remember this well! A main character arrives when he intends to!
Okay, I’m really starting to get sick of this-
...Huh?
...It seems you noticed it too, Mahiru.
Fuhahahahaha!
Y-Yeah, I did...
All right, now that everyone's all together... Let's take the secret entrance to the trial field!
P-Please wait a second!
...My my, Monomi. Just what are you doing here? Nobody asked for you.
I-I...I...!
Hm? Do you actually want to join in?
Do you want to taste how powerless you are at the class trial? You're an even bigger masochist than I thought...
Oh well! I'm a big brother who dotes on his little sister. I shall allow your special participation!
...
I'll go on ahead and wait for you guys, so hurry over! [leaves]
He told us to come, but...how do we get there?
I...don't see any doors...or vehicles...
He said there was a hidden entrance somewhere, didn’t he?
A hidden entrance...?
* Rumble rumble rumble...! *
W... What’s happening?! Everything’s shaking!!
S-Something came out!?
Could it be... Is he telling us to enter it?
S-Such a suspicious aura...! Even Crimson Steel Elephant Maga-Z is trembling with fear...!
Uwaaah! That's so totally suspicious!
F-Fuck me...! Seriously...just fuck me already...!
Hey, why don't we just stop here?
I mean...none of this is real anyway.
Like...not even remotely...
There's no way! There's just no way we'll find the killer!
C-Complaining won't get us anywhere! If you're really a man, then man up for god's sake!
We've come this far... We have no choice but to keep moving forward...
You're right... There's nowhere for us to run... We need to do it...
If that's everyone's decision...I'll just follow you guys.
If this were a video game, it'd have a very high difficulty level... Let's do our best to clear the game.
...
This...is an elevator! I see...! This entire rock is an elevator!
Once again... Monokuma is doing what he pleases...
However, if he's gone this far and made something like this... I don't think he's playing around.
Even so, we're goin' pretty deep.
Yeah, we are...
I’d barely noticed how strained my breathing had become... and how much I was sweating...
But what I did notice... was that I didn’t feel like crying.
Had the shock finally gotten to me? Was I already becoming accustomed to this intense feeling of despair?
...
The elevator continued to plunge deeper underground, its ominous noises ringing through our ears.
Until, after a long time, our descent finally came to an end...
...and the elevator doors slowly opened.
Okayyy! Welcome!
This is the class trial field! How do you like it? It's a special place that will decide your fates!
Tch...what the hell is he thinking...!? Locking us in a shitty-looking place like this...!
Are you fuckin' crazy!? Don't mess with me, shithead!
Puhuhu... Complain all you like, I'm used to it by now.
But, let’s not waste any more time and electricity! Go find the seat your name is written on!
Everyone knew it would be useless to resist. We did as we were ordered and found our designated seats.
