Trial 1 - Part 9
Well, what now?
If the knife isn't the murder weapon, there's no definitive proof that I'm the killer.
Then what the hell was all that before...?
Y-You say you were shoved away, but...you can't actually prove it, right?
That's right... Even if a different weapon was used, it does not mean Nagito has been cleared of suspicion!
B-But... there's another reason why I don't think Nagito is the killer...
Th-There's still more!?
Based on what we've discussed... Byakuya was killed under the table, right?
Is there something wrong with that?
Well... Even if that's true, I feel Nagito looks... you know... clean...
Nobody's ever complimented me on my appearance before! Not even my own mother!
Nyehhh... I'm not talking about your looks!
What you’re saying is that Nagito didn’t have any blood on him, right?
Y-Yes! That's it!
Because...under the table, there was a lot of blood splattered everywhere, right? There were even bloodstains on the inside of the tablecloth...
If he stabbed Byakuya to death, it's strange he did not get splattered with any blood...
I didn't get any blood on me? That *is* weird, huh.
You just used somethin' to block the blood, didn't ya!?
Something that might've been used to block the blood splatter... What do you think it could've been?
Hm... I guess we did see something I could've used... Isn't that right, Mahiru?
There was a bloodied tablecloth in the storage room... That’s what you’re talking about, isn’t it?
If there are bloodstains on it, that settles it! Nagito used the tablecloth to block the blood splatter!
But that was found in the storage room, right? Are you suggesting he hid it there after the murder?
You mean after the lights came back on? What would he have done if we'd seen him?
Yes, exactly... That tablecloth was pretty big, so even if you tried to hide it and take it with you...
Wearing a tablecloth, going under the table, getting a knife in a blackout, and stabbing someone...
That's not just impossible for someone like me... Wouldn't it also be impossible for you guys, too?
Th-Then...what does it mean...?
...
Maybe...the killer didn't necessarily stab Byakuya *under* the table.
No, there's no mistake that the murder occurred under that table.
Even the inside of the tablecloth was bloody...so there's no denying Byakuya was killed there.
But that doesn't mean where Byakuya got stabbed and where the killer did the stabbing are the same... right?
I don't understand at all!
Huh? Mahiru... you look like you’re onto something.
R-Really?! You got that... riddle thing she just said?!
Under the table, but not *under* the table... If it's somehow possible, it's the only way that makes sense!
Moving forward, we should just put aside all unnecessary preconceptions and just choose the answer... I think.
I... I think I’ve got it! The culprit stabbed Byakuya from the crawlspace under the floor!
He was stabbed...through the floor?
The old building’s floor is full of gaps. The carpet was supposed to accommodate that, but it didn’t reach all the way to the table.
If someone pushed a weapon through one of those gaps, they could probably stab and kill Byakuya!
If so, that means the killer was able to get under the floorboards. But from where? And how?
I don’t know myself... but I have an idea of someone who might.
Hey, Gundham! You dropped your earring back in the hall, didn’t you?
...Are you referring to the Hell Hound Earring?
Of course I am. That earring-
...I said, are you referring to the Hell Hound Earring?
...
The *Hell Hound* earring... fell under the floor, right?
Ah...there it is... I have found it! Truly, that is the Hell Hound Earring!
Fuhaha... fuhahahahaha! it seems God exists for my benefit!
...
...However, how do I recover it?
I cannot fit my arm through this opening... Were I to use a tool, it would probably not reach either...
Kehehe... Just a bit longer and I would have reduced everything, including that building, to ashes...
However, it's just as the old legend said! The Hell Hound Earring has returned to its owner, to me!
Anyway... that’s the earring you’re wearing right now, isn’t it?
Huh? Could it be!?
Gundham lost the earring during the investigation...
...Yet just before the trial started, he had it back on.
Which means that during the investigation, he somehow retrieved his earring from under the floor!
So... Gundham knows how to get under the floorboards.
Kehehe... It's understandable. After all, you fools only view the world through eyes of glass...
But I am different! With the power of my Four Dark Devas of Destruction, it is of no concern!
Truly, this is the "Evil Fourth Eye!"
What should I do!? I'm embarrassed just listening to him!
D'ohhhhh! Man up and speak more clearly!
Fine, I shall tell you all! The answer was in the storage room!
One of my Four Dark Devas of Destruction... Mirage Golden Hawk, Jum-P, has seen beyond the chaos.
A Secret Passage of Doom leading to the underground lurks beneath a large assortment of random boxes...
After securing a lighter from the supermarket, I threw caution to the wind and ventured below the floorboards.
And as a result of that lonesome battle... I was able to recover the Hell Hound Earring with my own two hands!
Fuhaha! Tremble with fear, fools! Behold my power!
There he goes blabbing about power and crap... You're ridiculous! You're just a breeder, y'know!
Anyway... it sounds like you can go under the floorboards from the storage room.
Then that has to be how the killer did it.
If the space beneath the floor is empty, it's not that far to move from the storage room to the dining hall.
I see... If they passed through the storage room, I understand why the tablecloth was put there.
The killer lurked under the floorboards during the party and from there... "stab stab stab!"
Hmm, are you sure?
You don't like "stab stab stab"...? Should it sound something more like “ree ree ree”!?
No, I'm not talking about your sound effects...
You're saying they snuck under the floorboards, but that means they would've had to leave the party, right?
So...was there anyone who was able to do that?
Then whoever wasn't at the party is the killer. They must be the one who was waiting under the floorboards.
...Who wasn't at the party again?
I didn't participate, but... I was guarding the entrance, remember? Monomi over there can be my witness... right?
Yes, this Monomi over here is your witness.
I believe there's no need to discuss this matter further, but... I was unable to leave the bathroom...
I was in the kitchen at the start, but Byakuya made me join everyone in the dining hall.
Huh... So the only person who wasn’t at the party is...
...
Yay, it's decided!
Wh-What the fuck are you saying!? I'm not the killer!
Yep yep, that's right. Things are starting to get exciting!