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Shuichi looked around his lab. “Well… It's certainly an aesthetic.” Kaito laughed. “I like it! It feels rustic.” Maki glared at him from across the room. “Do you know what rustic means or are you just a dumbass.” Kaito paled. “C’mon, Maki Roll. Lighten up.” She sighed.
Shuichi walked around the lab. Along the walls were several shelves, packed with books and folders. There was also a fireplace, around which there was a variety of antique furniture. Maki sat down in a rocking chair near the lit fire. “If not for the ongoing killing game, I could imagine this room being quite nice.” Kaito laughed. “Yeah, it's pretty neat.” Shuichi nodded and made a noise of agreement as he began to check the shelves.
On the first shelf he checked, there were a variety of folders about murder cases. He couldn't tell if they were real or fake. Several included information about notable serial killers, although in all cases, they were ones he'd never heard of. He placed the folders he'd taken out back on the shelf and looked at the shelf next to it. It seemed to focus on non-fiction about historical murder cases, as well as other serious crimes. Kaito walked up behind him. “Oh these look fun. Like if they took true crime podcasts and printed them out.” Maki sighed from across the room. “You really are a dumbass.” As Kaito tried to find an excuse for himself, Shuichi returned the books he'd picked up back. It was certainly a shelf that held his interest more than the first one, but it still felt rather frivolous for an Ultimate Research Lab.
He passed by Maki and the fireplace as he made his way to the other shelves. On the third shelf he checked, it seemed to be detective fiction. He didn't recognize most of the titles, but a few stood out, such as Sherlock Holmes. Kaito once again followed Shuichi. This time, he looked at the shelf, taking out a book that caught his eye. “ Pretty Boy Detective Club ? Damn, Shuichi, I know you're the Ultimate Detective, but I can't believe someone wrote a light novel about you.” Shuichi shook his head and started to respond, before reconsidering. As Shuichi moved onto the last shelf, he made a mental note to revisit that shelf. Detective fiction had always been a gap in his literary experience. A killing game wasn't the best place for light reading, but it would do him no good to suffer in boredom while waiting for something to happen again.
The last shelf lacked a theme like the others. It had biographies about famous detectives, books on the history of criminal investigation, and a number of other topics relating to crime and detective work. With nothing catching his eye, Shuichi finished looking at the shelves.
Shuichi sat down at the table and turned to face the other two in the room. “I guess I get the intent here, but… This room seems pretty unremarkable. It's basically a library.” Maki nodded. “At least having a real fire is nice.” At some point, she had poured herself some tea. She seemed to be enjoying herself. Kaito had sat down on a couch across from Maki. He pointed at the table Shuichi was sitting at. “Hey, what are those bottles.” Maki stared at them for a few seconds. “Poison. Incredibly deadly poison, at that. Careful, Shuichi. One wrong step with those and you could end up dead.” Shuichi looked at the bottles before sliding them away from himself. “Got it.”
Shuichi looked around the room. “But is this it? I mean, it's a rather unglamorous lab. They haven't all been made equal, but still…”
Suddenly, Monokuma popped up out of nowhere. “Of course this isn't it! You missed the most important thing!” He walked over to the forth bookshelf and jumped a couple times before grabbing a book on one of the middle shelves. As he pulled it out, the bookshelf started to move. As it did, a small alcove was revealed. “Ta da!” Against his better judgment, Shuichi walked over to where the small plush stood. Inside, he saw a number of needles, as well as some large vials of liquid. “What is this?” Monokuma laughed. “Isn't it obvious? It's your heroin!” Shuichi let out a deep sigh. Monokuma spoke over the sigh. “What Ultimate Detective wouldn't be complete without a heroin addiction, just like the great Sherlock Holmes.” Shuichi finished sighing. “Are you kidding me?” Monokuma looked proud. “Don't feel a need to hold back, by the way! We restock it nightly.” Shuichi facepalmed. “Oh, good.”
Monokuma reached up and grabbed a needle. “C’mon. No time to get started like the present!” He tried handing it to Shuichi. The detective backed away. “I'm not interested, sorry.” Monokuma looked sad. “That's unfortunate. We spent so much of the school's budget on this heroin and now you won't even use it. Why do you think I had to outsource the other teaching positions to my children?” Kaito spoke up. “I always assumed it was nepotism.” Monokuma cackled. “Don't be silly, nepotism only applies to nephews and nieces.”
Maki pinched the bridge of her eyes. “This conversation is beginning to give me a headache. I'm heading back to my lab.” As she stood up, Kaito began to follow her. “Y’know what, Maki Roll, that sounds like a great idea.” Monokuma pouted a little before turning to Shuichi and gesturing with the needle. Shuichi laughed nervously. “Since the others are going, I think they'd feel lonely without me. Three's a party, they say.” He turned around and hurried after them, not paying attention to Monokuma’s response.