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Upon waking up, Kokichi immediately realized it would’ve been better if he’d stayed asleep. The position he found himself in was far from desirable.
He was seated on a lavish throne, no doubt designed with his title of Ultimate Supreme Leader in mind. However, while the throne itself was cushioned and comfortable, the bondage that accompanied it did little to ease his nerves. Metal restraints were clamped over his wrists and elbows, pinning his arms over his head and against the throne’s back. Around his waist and neck were similar bands of metal, keeping him seated and pressed against the surface behind him. His ankles had been locked in stocks that complemented the throne, and though he couldn’t see his feet, he could still feel that they were bare… and that his toes were being held back. On top of all that, his generous captor had decided to leave him topless. He was unable to repress a shiver as a chill swept across his upper body.
None of it boded well…
And then Monokuma’s voice rang out from a speaker on the wall.
“Ah! Finally awake, I see! It’s about time. I thought I was gonna have to throw water on you or something!”
“Fun set up you got here,” Kokichi drawled, doing his best to sound nonchalant even while his heart was pounding. “I have to say, it looks pretty kinky! Did you get Miu to help you with the design?”
“Oh, even she wouldn’t be able to come up with what I’ve got in store for you!”
“Hmmmm? And what would that be?”
The moment the question left his mouth, Kokichi knew he’d regret it.
“Upupupupu… I’ve prepared a special punishment for you, Kokichi Ouma, the Ultimate Supreme Leader!”
Oh.
“Let’s give it everything we’ve got!”
Oh no.
“It’s… PUNISHMENT TIME!!!”
Through the speaker came the familiar squeak of Monokuma’s favorite button, and then the throne launched into action.
Kokichi’s heart plummeted as an absurd number of mechanical hands sprang up all around him. Four to his left, four to his right, and two at his feet. Some held tools while others didn’t, but all donned cartoonish white gloves.
All ten hands descended on him at once, crushing any hope Kokichi had of resisting.
“A-AGH… GAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!”
The first set of hands targeted his underarms. One honed in directly with all five fingers, while the other wiggled a feather duster against the ticklish hollow. The second set danced along his ribs, alternating between tapping each rib bone as if playing a piano and digging in mercilessly. The third set squeezed his sides, kneading the soft flesh like dough. In the fourth set, one hand spidered across his belly, while the other twirled a paintbrush inside his extra-sensitive navel. The eight hands roamed up and down his torso, leaving no part of his upperbody ignored in their ticklish exploration.
The fifth and final set at his feet made sure to stay unpredictable. One moment, each hand in the pair was scribbling furiously against a vulnerable sole. Then in the next moment, one hand had seemingly disappeared as another began to slowly and methodically stroke its fingers from his heel to the underside of his toes. Just when Kokichi had nearly forgotten about the other hand, it forcefully reintroduced itself by shoving an electric brush against his other foot.
All together, the hands were driving him absolutely insane.
He struggled with all his might, but the best he could do was tremble in his restraints. He clenched his fists and squeezed his eyes shut, though it hardly helped him endure the haze of ticklish torment he was being subjected to. Curling his toes wasn’t even an option. For all his intellect and cunning, Kokichi could do little more than laugh. Laugh until his throat hurt, laugh until it was painful, laugh until he was crying.
At some point, one of the hands attached an oxygen mask to his face, denying him even the mercy of fainting.
It was absolute hell.
…
…
…
And then it stopped.
Kokichi sagged with relief, far too exhausted to consider what that implied. It wasn’t until gentle hands reached out, removing the oxygen mask and brushing away the tear tracks on his burning cheeks, that he looked up and saw his savior.
“Sh… Shu…”
“It’s okay, you don’t need to talk,” Shuichi reassured him, then directed his next words at the area behind the throne. “Kaito! Have you figured out how to get him out of this thing?”
Ah, saviors. Plural.
“Gimme a minute! This panel’s got way too many switches on it! It’s even got a clock… Jeez. If this is accurate, he’s been locked in there for around three hours. Is he okay?”
Shuichi’s answer went unheard, as Kokichi chose that moment to pass out.
“Damn, he’s so light,” Kaito remarked absentmindedly, shifting Kokichi in his arms.
“I can’t believe Tsumugi was just gonna leave him there…” Shuichi glanced at the slumbering boy with concern.
“Who knew getting tickled to death could be so fucked up.”
“Yeah… So what do we do now?”
“First things first, we should get Kokichi to bed. He’ll probably be out for a while.”
“And after that?”
“I’m sure we can figure it out from there.”
Upon waking up, Kokichi realized three things.
He was warm, he was safe, and he had people he could count on.