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◈» "And now, the new semester of mutual killing begins!"
Your stomach drops―metaphorically, of course. You don't really have one. But metaphors aside, a most dreadful feeling traverses your body.
(Given, if you do have feelings)
The mascot bear, Monokuma, simply gives them a wicked glance before announcing the first motive: "noise".
In no time, a tangle of words and images crowd around all the boys' heads. Except yours.
what's happening this is outrageous we have to stick together lies liars this is no gentlemanly action unusual beauty
Toujou directs most of the boys to the infirmary, except Hoshi, who disappears quickly into nowhere, and Ouma, who refuses to cooperate until Toujou threatens to stop cooking meals for him.
While Toujou and the girls search for Hoshi, you stand guard for the boys.
"Everyone… Are you doing quite alright?"
"Try having your thoughts broadcasted everywhere around you, see if you like that." Kaito grits his teeth, the words stupid robot bear stupid school stupid game stupid everything let me out floating above his head.
Ouma snickers, a wicked grin (is it truly wicked?) on his face and robot boy robot boy robot boy. "Hey, Momota-chan, what's the point of leaving for you? You already have severe ailment right?"
Kaito stares at Ouma, his left hand clamping shut and opening repeatedly. "Not your business."
"It's everyone's business. Literally all our thoughts are open for everyone to see."
You can sense the unsaid statement. Except Kiibo's.
Except robot boy's. Except not-human boy's. «◈
◈» Failing to contain everyone and finding a cure, the boys return to their own dorms. All of them have a padlock on their door. Breaking the one on Ouma's is no difficult feat for you.
"Ooh, is Kiiboy thinking of snuffing me out here?" Ouma's smile retains its malicious quality. saihara-chan saihara-chan saihara-chan are flashing around him, and you doubt Ouma is as confident as he would like to appear to be.
"I have no such intention. Robots are not necessarily evil."
"How could you say anything about your intention if you don't even have any free will?" will saihara-chan miss me when i die will saihara-chan even look at me twice will saihara-chan care about me
"I do have free will, Ouma-kun."
"You don't, Kiiboy. You don't." Ouma's grin is built out of pity. "You have no inner voice. You are empty in there. Or else why didn't the noise affect you?"
"You want me to base my own humanity on something Monokuma devises, rather than―"
"Your own free will, your own thoughts? Kiiboy, your thoughts are all programmed. Everything about you is. You are just a something." And with that, Ouma pushes you out of the his room.
You rush back to your room, purposefully ignoring your charging dock, and closing your eyes and folding into yourself next to the bed. You can feel your battery percentage drop as your view of sight becomes gloomier. 52%. 35%.
The next day, while Akamatsu forces you to charge, you hear snippets of panicked words and more "noise" outside.
When you finally reach 100% again, Akamatsu tells you that Ouma had been killed by a remorseless Shinguuji upon Ouma's own request. «◈
◈» The usual haze of i want to die i want to die i don't want to continue disappear around Saihara, replaced by a blank face.
You consider yourself human for sensing the crushing sadness behind Saihara's blank expression.
"Saihara-kun, are you doing okay?"
Saihara lets out a bitter laugh at that. "Nobody is okay, I presume." That's all he said. Then he's silent again.
You are determined to dig more. "What do you think about Monokuma's new motive?"
"Getting out of this barricaded house without the beasts chasing us?" Saihara's voice carries no inflection. "Who would've thought that bastard would go that far just to make us kill…"
"I can go out for you guys, you know. To get supplies and stuff." You volunteer.
Saihara lets out a harsh laugh. "Tell Akamatsu-san about that. Don't tell a nobody like me about it."
You decide that's your cue to leave, and go to Akamatsu. Kaito, Gonta and her are nailing more wooden boards to the entrance of the house.
Akamatsu lets you help quite quickly. With your help, soon the entrance is blocked.
You tell them you want to stand guard here, just in case any beast really barges in.
Akamatsu's laugh sounds like wind chime at that. "Kiibo-kun, that's nice of you, but we don't need that, I'm sure."
You aren't quite as sure. «◈
◈» You lie awake. You always lie awake, as a matter of fact, but you feel much more unsettling awake right now.
Do you really feel it?
You may have shed tears for a temporary friend―classmate, at the very least―but you don't come with a tear duct.
Do you really feel it?
A bang sounds from the bottom of the floor.
You decide this is just a mistake in your sensors and cover your head with the cover.
It can't stop you from going to the trial the next day, you know. But at least you could postpone knowing the truth.
Gonta says it's true that Akamatsu was torn apart by one of the beasts.
But Saihara's final verdict reveals that Gonta is the one to perform the mercy kill, the last lethal slash across Akamatsu's throat that truly kills her.
Gonta goes out with a smile as forced as the cadaver that once belonged to a talented pianist. «◈
◈» You found that you truly have emotions; otherwise, how would you feel so afraid that you dare not to go out at that time to stop the murder?
But that doesn't excuse you. You could've stopped it, right? So what have you done instead?
When Monokuma announces the third motive of giving some of the classmates' secrets to the others, you step up and clamp Monokuma around the neck.
"If you don't want anything bad happen to you, then release all of us right now."
"Ooh, little broken robot trying to be bigger than he is? How adorable~" Monokuma gushes, until you flash out a cannon that you secretly put together.
You fire it with absolute precision. «◈
"ahhh, how did they succeed?"
the intern lets out a frustrated sigh, and moves the cursor to the pause button to restart.
◈» When you come to be, a depressed Saihara informs you that Maki had killed Tenko and Himiko. Apparently, Tenko and Himiko were lied into believing that Maki is a "Remnant of Hope" without her memories, and Maki in turn was fooled into thinking that Tenko and Himiko were the mastermind of this killing game. Everything is quite perfectly planned.
And as expected, you were powerless to stop it. «◈
◈» "Iruma-san, do you ever think ill of me?"
Iruma screws your chest plate back in place and looks at you with a faint smile. "Why would I?"
"Do you ever think I'm not human, and only like me so much because I'm a robot?"
Iruma pauses in putting back the the tools into the kit. And huffs a sigh. "Kiibo. I like you not because you are a robot. I like you because you're a Super High School Level student just like us. Because you're one of us." «◈
◈» You are of considerable weight, so the fact that Kaito can so effortlessly lift you up to his bed is quite shocking to you.
Before you could get any word out, Kaito presses his body flush against yours, fingers notched into your armour plates and pressing his lips to your neck. His eyes look deep into yours.
(Does he see a soul?)
"Wait―"
"For what?" Kaito's smirk radiates something you can't comprehend.
"Why are you―"
"Why not?"
"This doesn't make―"
"Sense? None of this makes sense. So why not?" He presses lips against yours. He never moves his eyes away from yours.
You can't shake off the feeling that you are just a toy, so you kiss back to get back control.
Kaito smiles into the kiss. «◈
◈» Hoshi hangs above the stage, as if a performance that is about to end but hasn't finished.
"Stay close with me," Kaito whispers to you, and you nearly yelp. The allure of his voice must say something about your emotions.
Iruma, who had been tending to your maintenance for some time, also grips your hand. "Don't just listen to this idiot! I know more spots to look for evidence."
"Of… Of course." You mumble a reply to both of them. You can't elaborate on a better response, because your AI is busy trying to comprehend the emotions you are having over the both of them.
The process is tedious and hard, so much that you miss quite a big part of Angie's desperate monologue about why she had to kill Hoshi to appease God, how that would get them back into God's good graces and escape.
Instead of thinking of crying for Hoshi and Angie's passing, you can't stop feeling the blossom of warmth in your chest about Iruma and Kaito. «◈
◈» Your vocal chord goes humanly hoarse after you have screamed so much over the remains of Iruma's body.
Iruma's torso impaled on a pipe is an image that you could never erase from your memory no matter how hard you try.
The remaining students all leave you and Kaito alone, so Kaito could hug you and give you strength. Strength that doesn't come from charging.
"We… We should go and find evidence already." You sob.
"It's okay if you don't want to, y'know?" Kaito hugs you tighter so your face is pressed against his chest. "I can just stay with you here until the trial had to start."
"No… I have to…" You struggle to get up. Struggle to open your eyes to the world again. «◈
◈» The truth you open your eyes to is cruelty beyond measure.
The lack of alibis, the conveniently-placed weapon, the fact that they understand the motive means it cannot possibly be another.
You start sobbing again. Without tears, of course, but close enough. "The culprit… Responsible for Iruma Miu's death… Is… Mo―Momo―ta…"
"No use postponing the inevitable, Kiibo." Kaito's smile is still so bright, ever so bright. "I'm sorry. About killing Iruma to find out the truth, and that I didn't come clean with you why I harass you the first time―"
"It's no harassment! I… I have enjoyed it, after all." You nearly laugh. It's true though. Your relationship with Kaito had evolved so much, you can't remember the time when you question whether you are human or not.
Kaito smiles again. "That's the Kiibo I know and love." He approaches you and hugs you again. "Don't ever forget me, huh?"
"I know… Momota Kaito, luminary of the stars…"
"Nevertheless… I'm sorry, Kiibo―" Before Kaito could finish his sentence, Monokuma raises the alarm that signals the execution. «◈
◈» The space rocket crashes back to the ground. Fortunately enough, it doesn't carry back Kaito's pulverized body.
"Hey, now that only the five of us remain, what is going to―"
Before Amami could finish his sentence, you rush back to your talent lab.
The cannon, the lazer beam… They are all there.
You fly back to the group in enhanced armour and weaponry.
Monokuma's face is unchanging, but the smirk is existent. "Ooh, little Kiibo, what are you―"
"Say farewell, Despair." You fire at the Exisals. «◈
the intern frowns at the final set of data.
perhaps kiibo really needs audience participation feature. the kiibo now is so boring and generates such an unconventional and boring plot line, of course the intern had to do something about it.
most importantly, the intern decides, is that they mustn't let kiibo be the protagonist. the kiibo now is only capable of embroiling themselves in existential crisis. so boring. letting that happen would definitely push down the ratings to despairful height. not to mention all the tiny changes she made to the other characters… she had to change them.
the intern hits the reset button and switches the protagonist to the pianist, and changes back to some more traditional motives.