Chapter 2 - Part 25
...Nagito!?
Whoa!? Why the hell are you here!?
Why hello there, Kazuichi... Thanks for going easy on me earlier.
Thanks to you, I was able to walk away with only mild bruising. You clearly think like an Ultimate.
Mahiru! Why’d you gotta bring him along!?
How’s he even walking around? Did you finally snap and untie him!?
I-It was Monomi who did it!
Ah, dear Monomi...
Dammit, of course the rabbit let him free! Now we’re screwed!
Shut up!
P... Please stop fighting! Not here! Not in front of Chiaki!
...
Nevertheless, you two have arrived at a good time...
Big news! I have discovered something very terrible!
A... terrible discovery?
U-Um... not only that...
I believe... it's nothing like Sonia's but... there's something... I noticed, too...
Yep, this is great... It looks like the investigation is reaching its boiling point.
...
Miss Sonia... is unusually happy right now...
That’s awesome! The best kind of sexy is the sexy you least expect!
Is sex all you can think about?
W-Wah!? You were listening!?
Hey, answer my question!
Ngh... Why does it matter what I do? I’m not hurting anybody...
“Not hurting anybody”... except when you start spying on girls!
Will you let that go already!? I didn’t even spy!
Sure, I might’a been eavesdropping earlier, but Hajime and I weren't gonna spy! We were just gonna... join in!
So eavesdropping is bad unless you do it?
W-Well...
Um... perhaps we should save this discussion for later?
Mikan already asked you to stop being disrespectful in front of Chiaki...
Right... I’m sorry.
...
We’re nearly out of investigation time.
Mikan just finished performing the autopsy. She might’ve found an important clue, don’t you think?
Also, it seems Sonia has some information, too...
...I apologize, I am not being that helpful.
Listen! I have big news!
Huge, huuuuuge news!
W-What is it you want to say?
Remember that Sunny Witch ♪ Esper Ito mask that was next to Chiaki’s body!?
Yes, I do... Is it really something to be so excited about?
Indubitably! It’s Sparkling Justice!
Eh?
Sparkling Justice! The specter of humanity’s darkest desires! The self-proclaimed ally of justice!
They wear a hero mask at all times. Supposedly, they are a serial killer who only murders other criminals...!
...I’m sorry, but what does this have to do with anything?
Mahiru, I demand you take this seriously! This is *Sparkling Justice* we are talking about!
This Sparkling Justice character... That's the serial killer you were talking about before, right?
It's true that the mask we found is a hero mask, but...
It is a heroine mask, to be precise!
Sunny Witch ♪ Esper Ito is a pretty magical girl witch!
See? A heroine!
A-Anyway... so you're saying it's possible that this serial killer is the one who killed Chiaki?
Eh!? What!?
Which means... there's a serial killer hiding among us?
I'm pretty sure I've seen a twist like this in a video game...
No, I don’t think we’ve got a serial killer on the loose...
It’s just a mask. It was probably used to keep the killer’s face hidden.
...But even so, they sure chose something that stands out.
Although it's easy to write this off as foolish, it might be best if we exercise some caution.
Sonia... can you tell me everything you know about this so-called Sparkling Justice?
“The time has come to don this mask, imbued with the very essence of justice, and lay bare the ugly entrails of evil...”
Huh? What’s gotten into her?
“Jus ・ tice ・ Com ・ plete!”
“The center of justice that is pierced by justice! The lead star of justice that shines in the night sky!”
“That would be me...Sparkling Justice!”
W-Why did you think it was okay to start screaming like that!?
That... is Sparkling Justice's catchphrase.
An unknown serial killer... has a catchphrase...?
I read it in a magazine in the library.
There has only ever been one person--a journalist--who has interviewed Sparkling Justice... The article was written in their native language, so I tried translating it.
However... in the end, that journalist was punished by Sparkling Justice, too...
R-Really!?
...No good can come from getting involved with a serial killer.
You are the last person who should be saying that.
Um... this is all I know about Sparkling Justice.
Thanks to the masks, nobody knows their true age or gender, making them a very mysterious individual...
W-We’re jumping to conclusions way too fast! There’s no way anyone here is a serial killer!
No, it does not mean they are in our group...
It is possible the serial killer was already lurking on this island, and decided to murder Chiaki!
Th-That's probably not possible...
Obviously it’s not! This is just getting silly!
But... that is the only thing I can think of...
I mean... no matter how much I think about it, I simply cannot believe it!
That one of us is capable of committing such a horrible murder... No matter how much I think about it, I simply cannot believe it!
Ah... Sonia...
These things she’s saying... She’s just trying to deal with the reality of Chiaki’s death.
Because... there’s no way a serial killer is hiding somewhere on this island.
Chiaki’s killer... can only be one of us.
Didn’t you have something to show me, Mikan?
W-Well... compared to the others, what I have to say isn't that important...
S-So... please don't get your hopes up... and be disappointed...
Don’t worry about it. You were really helpful in the last investigation.
...
Hiiii...
Um... so can you tell me what you’ve discovered?
Um... I tried my best to perform the autopsy, and I was able to find out that...
Chiaki was definitely killed by a blow to the head.
She was probably... struck from behind by one blow... Based on the scar... the weapon is clearly the metal bat.
But every dark cloud has a silver lining, as they say... um... it looks like Chiaki didn't suffer.
Eh? What do you mean?
Um... There's no doubt... that she died instantly.
Ah...
That's terrible... but it seems very important... I’d better try to remember it.
And... there's another thing I found... During the autopsy, I discovered this in Chiaki’s pocket.
"I was going to tell you in person, but I couldn't find you so I put this in your mailbox.
About what we discussed earlier, is it okay if we change the place and time?
I want you to come to the beach house on the second island at 2:30 p.m.
It seems there's someone who wants to interfere with our meeting.
Let's keep it a secret. Until then, let's try not to see each other for a while.
It would be bad if they started suspecting us for no reason.
-Hiyoko Saionji."
Eh!? This note...!
If this letter is real, it would mean Hiyoko met up with Chiaki, right...?
...And their meeting here would have been 30 minutes before Chiaki died.
I-If we think about what that implies... then...
Ohhhhh! I'm starting to get confused!
