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The room we enter is… loud. The primary colors lining the walls and the checkered floorboards provide a sense of light-heartedness and glee, like a child visiting the circus. A stark contrast to the emotions we all feel in this moment.
Our classmate, Leon Kuwata, is dead. And if we don’t find out who murdered him, everyone in this room will meet his same fate.
As everyone files in, I see our trial ground. Standing seats are arranged in a circle in the center of the room, designed so we can all see each other, shift blame and fear at the drop of a hat. My legs are shaking as I find the seat labeled Makoto, and it takes everything in me to keep standing. Everyone else finds their spots slowly, and Sayaka ends up in the seat to my left. I turn to smile at her, but she doesn’t meet my gaze. Looking back to the right, I catch a glimpse of something, a poster on a stick.
It’s a picture of Leon’s face, in black and white, with a large blood-colored X on it. I have to hold down the vomit threatening to escape my mouth.
I can’t imagine anyone in this room killing him. Unfortunately for me, everyone else can’t say the same. Leon’s body being in my bedroom isn’t exactly a good look. Even Sayaka doesn’t trust me, but…
No. No time to think about that possibility right now, I need to focus on proving my innocence first.
Before I have time to collect my thoughts, Monokuma is yelling at us from his throne, positioned slightly above us, reminding us who’s really in charge.
“Let’s begin with a basic explanation of the class trial. So, your votes will determine the results!”
I glance around, looking for anyone who might believe me. I manage to make eye contact with Byakuya, but he scoffs at me and turns his head back to Monokuma.
“If you can figure out ‘whodunnit’ then only they will receive punishment. But if you pick the wrong one…then I’ll punish everyone besides the blackened, and the one that deceived everyone else will graduate!”
Graduate… what a terrible word to use in this context. We were supposed to graduate together, as a class, not…
How could anyone have killed him?
“And the killer is one of us?” I hear myself saying.
“Of course!” Monokuma chirps back.
We all sit in silence for a minute.
“Okay then…” Taka’s voice. It’s confident, but I can see his fear in the way his throat wobbles as he speaks. “Everyone close your eyes, and whoever did it, raise your hand!” Mondo is quick to shut him down, and everyone else agrees. If only it would be that easy; the killer just revealing themself, sacrificing their fate for ours.
“Before we move on and start the trial, can I ask a question real quick?” All eyes turn to Kyoko. Her voice is quiet, but calm. Unlike Taka, she seems 100% sure of herself when she speaks: “What’s going on with that picture?” She points to the poster of Leon, and Monokuma gets a devilish grin on his face.
“ I’d feel awful if he got left out just because he died. Friendship penetrates even death’s barrier!”
At this point, I have to look down. It takes every bit of concentration I have to not throw up, and I accidentally miss some of the conversation. I tune back in to Monokuma clapping his hands together.
“Okay, that about does it for the preamble. Get ready to get started! First up is the case summary. Now, let the class trial… begin !”
The room goes quiet. I try to collect my thoughts; I need to remember every piece of evidence I could possibly use to prove my innocence. Because if they vote for me, it’s not just me who dies, it’s everyone. Everyone except the killer.
Ok, what do I know?
- Switching rooms- last night Sayaka and I switched rooms, after Sayaka had become scared because of the attack on her room. Leon’s body was found in my room, the one Sayaka had slept in…
- Used bleach- under the sink in my room, there appeared to be a bottle of bleach that had been opened and used. What was it used for?
- Kitchen knife set- a knife from the set in the kitchen was missing.
- Aoi’s account- Aoi said that the knife must have gone missing while she was in the dining hall, because it was there when she entered but gone when she left.
- Clogging toilet- when we began investigating, Kyoko went into the bathroom and flushed the toilet. As soon as she did, it started to overflow. It was working fine before I switched rooms with Sayaka, so something must have happened.
- Lint-rolled corner- one corner of my room had been cleaned spotless, and my lint-roller had some volume missing from it.
- Blood in the sink: a small bit of blood was found in the sink drain in my room.
But what can I do with all this information? God, none of this makes any sense.
Once again, Taka is the one to break the silence. “I assert that the one who was murdered was Leon Kuwata!”
“Yeah, we know that part already.” Yasuhiro mumbles half-mindedly.
“And the murder took place in Makoto’s room.” Byakuya gives me a pointed look when he says that.
“Ok, so the place of murder was Makoto’s room. According to the Monokuma File, he died at around 1:30 am. Place, time, all that’s left is the topic of the weapon.” Sakura manages to stay calm, likely trying to ease tension in the room. Unless… could she have killed Leon?
I need to focus. The weapon- it must have been the missing kitchen knife, right?
“There was a knife sticking out of his neck. I noticed a missing knife from the set in the kitchen, so I think it’s safe to say that was the murder weapon.”
“O-o-of course y-you would know… y-you’re the one who killed him!” Toko practically spits out those last words.
“Oh yeah!” Junko piles on. “I mean, the body was found in his room, right?” I shift my attention away from Toko to respond, but I can feel her glare stuck on me.
“H-hold on a second! I’m-!”
“Let’s draw our conclusions after we’ve presented our arguments. Otherwise, what’s the point of the trial?” Kyoko saves me as I’m stumbling over my words. I give her a thankful look.
“Whatever.” My head jolts to the left, I see Sayaka’s mouth moving. She looks… annoyed? “No amount of evidence is going to change that conclusion.”
Wait, what? Is Sayaka… is she really accusing me?
“That’s not true at all. I think if we look back at our evidence, we’ll come to a very interesting conclusion.” Kyoko shoots daggers at Sayaka. Sayaka returns the look.
Yasuhiro starts talking, unaware of the tension around him. “Ok so… the murder weapon was the kitchen knife. So where does that get us? How could we even know who took the knife…This is hopeless!”
Who took the knife…that’s it!
“Hey, Hina…” I say. “Weren’t you in the dining room all last night?”
“Oh yeah! I went to make myself some tea, with Sakura. When I entered the kitchen, all the knives were there, but when I went back to wash the cup, one was missing!”
I relax a little. “So the knife disappeared sometime while you were in the dining room. And did I ever enter the kitchen while you were there?”
She squints her eyes. “...No.” I exhale.
“She’s l-l-lying! T-they’re working t-together!”
“Not true! Besides, Sakura was with me the whole time!”
“W-well then… YOU m-must have taken the k-knife. S-so Hina, how’d you d-do it? You k-killed Leon, huh?” Toko sneers.
“Impossible.” Sakura wipes Toko’s smile off her face. “Hina and I were together the whole night, so there’s no way either of us could have killed Leon.”
Hina looks embarrassed. “I got scared… after those videos yesterday, I was totally spooked out and I asked Sakura to stay the night. To make me feel better. But besides, this means we have airtight alibis!”
“Someone had to have taken the knife, no?” Celeste shifts the conversation back to the murder weapon. “Is there anyone who could have taken it while you were having your tea? Did anyone walk into the kitchen while you were there?” Her expression is neutral, but unnerving.
“Um, now that you mention it… Sayaka actually came in for a minute.”
“Yes. She said she was getting a glass of water.”
Sayaka’s face goes white. All eyes turn to her.
Immediately, the verbal attacks begin, everyone takes turns yelling at her, berating her, tormenting her. “How could you sit here and lie to us?’’ “How did it feel to kill him?” “Are you ready to die now?”
“HEY! Maybe Sayaka was just taking it for self defense! I mean, she was attacked last night!” I try to defend her.
Suddenly, Sayaka’s expression shifts.
“Yes, I took the knife. Makoto threatened me. He said if I didn’t get it for him he’d… he’d…” She begins crying. I didn’t do that, I know I didn’t do that, why is she lying? Is she…?
Everything clicks.
Sayaka’s been framing me. The room switch, the body in my room, and now she’s flat-out lying. I still don’t think she killed him, there’s no way Sayaka could kill someone. But still, she’s deliberately lying to make me look guilty. Who put her up to this? No. No time for that. I have to prove my innocence.
Unfortunately, I spent too much time thinking. The mob that was just berating Sayaka is coming after me now. I can’t find time to get a word in until…
“Enough!” I’ve never heard Kyoko raise her voice. Why is she so determined to protect me? “Makoto, what’s your response?”
I take a second to collect my thoughts.
Breathe in, breathe out. I know that I did not kill Leon. I know I can prove this. I just need to think…
“Last night, Sayaka came to my room. She asked to switch for the night, because she was scared after someone came banging on her door. We switched room keys, obviously. After that, I stayed in Sayaka’s room, until she came to my, well, her , door the next morning. We switched keys back, and headed down to the dining room, where we met up with Taka, and some others. That’s the truth.”
“And why should we believe you over Sayaka?” Byakuya scoffs.
“Yeah. Makoto seems way more likely to kill someone than that chick.” Mondo adds.
“Makoto, is there anything else that can prove your innocence?” Kyoko makes eye contact with me, and I know she believes me. That strength, that hope she gives me, pushes me forward. I think as hard as I can.
“One corner of my room… it was lint-rolled when we checked.”
“I’m sorry, I don’t think I follow.” Chihiro speaks for the first time this trial, her voice timid and small. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“The lint-rolling was most likely done to get rid of evidence, like hair,” Kyoko starts. “The murder took place in Makoto’s room.”
“Ohh, I see!” Hina claps her hands together. “If Makoto was the murderer, there would be no reason for him to clean. Finding his own hair in his room is perfectly normal.”
“Precisely. It’s simply beyond reason to assume that the room’s owner and the killer are one and the same.”
“But only one corner was cleaned,” Celeste again. She seems unfazed by this whole ordeal. “Perhaps there was incriminating evidence Makoto noticed in that corner and cleaned it to get rid of it.”
“That doesn’t make any sense. Lint rollers pick up hair and other small fuzz particles, and there is nothing Makoto could pick up with it that would have been out of place in his own room, at least as far as we know at this point.” Kyoko continues talking, getting more and more confident with every word. “Besides, it’s much more likely that someone planned to kill Leon, and restricted their area of movement to one corner. Then, once Leon was dead, they cleaned the corner and retraced their steps, leaving the rest of the room untouched.”
“And if Sayaka switched rooms with Makoto…”
“Then it would be most logical to assume that Sayaka had planned this murder, with the intent to frame Makoto.” Kyoko looks at me again.
God, why do I keep getting put on the spot?
“Makoto, is there anything else you remember from this morning, when you and Sayaka met back up? Anything that could prove our point?”
I squint, trying to concentrate. “Um, this morning…when Sayaka came to get me, she was missing her bow. And…she smelled. Not bad, but there was a faint smell of… cleaning chemicals, I want to say.”
“Now that you mention it, I do remember Sayaka not having her bow this morning.” Taka says. “But by the time we found the body, she had it!”
“That’s right,” Sakura adds. “This morning, she left around 7:45 to go look for the others, she must have gotten it then.”
“What are you trying to prove!?” Sayaka shouts suddenly. “I forgot my bow in my room, so I went back to get it while I was looking for everyone, so what? Why does that even matter?” Everyone shrugs in agreement with her, and I feel stupid for even bringing it up. Why would that even be useful?
Wait.
“No Sayaka, that’s wrong.”
I turn, and as my eyes meet hers, I can see the hope leaving her eyes.
Sayaka could not have killed Leon. I know this. But still…I have to prove my own innocence.
“We switched back room keys this morning. And if you slept in my room last night, you wouldn’t have been able to go back in to get your bow. That means- that you’re wearing a new bow now, and the one you had on last night is still in my room!”
“But like, didn’t we totally check every bit of Makoto’s room during the investigation?” Junko asks the question everyone is thinking. “Where would the bow even have gone?”
“Exactly!” says Sayaka. “If you can’t find the other bow, then you can’t prove I'm wearing a new one!”
“Hold on just a second.” Kyoko turns toward me, her eyes piercing through me. “Makoto, where do you think the bow could have gone?”
Think. Think. Think.
“When we were investigating, Kyoko went to check the bathroom. When she tried to flush the toilet, it immediately overflowed. It must have been clogged with something… it’s possible Sayaka could have flushed her bow down the toilet.”
“That’s ridiculous! Besides, isn’t there some rule against that or something?”
“The school rules don’t say anything about what you can or can’t flush down the toilet!” Monokuma pipes up for the first time in ages. He looks amused. “Who am I to regulate your bowels, after all?”
“Still, that’s completely circumstantial. And why does whether or not I was wearing my bow matter at all? You’re not proving anything!” Sayaka is starting to panic, clearly, and I can see tears forming in her eyes. I have to look away.
“What if Sayaka had to dispose of the bow…” Celeste looks up, as if in concentration. “...because it was covered in blood?”
“If my BOW was covered in blood, the rest of my clothes would be too, idiot!”
“Not if you used bleach.” Kyoko looks at me. “Makoto, remember the bleach we found while investigating?”
“...Yeah, it looked newly opened. And there was a substantial amount of liquid missing from it. That would explain the faint smell of bleach when Sayaka and I met up this morning.” I can’t believe what I’m saying. Sayaka is my friend, my ONLY friend here, and here I am accusing her. But I have to keep hope, hope that the truth will reveal itself, no matter what. I have to keep pushing.
“ Faint smell of bleach?” Byakuya’s words cut through the room. “If she bleached them overnight, the smell would still be strong by the time you two met up. Besides, you’re the only one who noticed this smell.”
“Not quite. Sayaka could have washed the clothes in the sink after bleaching them, eliminating much of the smell. In fact, during my investigation, I found trace amounts of blood in the sink drain.” Kyoko is deliberate with every word she says.
“Wait!” Sayaka interjects. “The water shuts off every night, from 10pm to 7am! If Leon was killed at 1:30 am, then I couldn’t have turned on the water and rinsed the clothes!”
Kyoko pauses and thinks. Then, she turns to me. “Makoto, what time did you switch rooms with Sayaka last night?”
“It was definitely before 10pm, because I remember watching the Monokuma announcement in Sayaka’s room.”
“And you met up at around 7:10. So then, is it not entirely possible that Sayaka switched rooms with you, then filled the sink with water
before
10 pm?”
“...Yes, that’s definitely possible.” Every second it gets harder and harder to believe Sayaka is innocent. But still, I have to keep going.
“Hey! Hellooooo! There’s still one thing all you idiots are missing!” Sayaka’s voice has gone from panicked to angry. “HOW did Leon even get in Makoto’s room? WHY would he go there? Until you can prove that, you have nothing!”
“I think I can prove that.” Kyoko pulls out a notepad from her pocket. Upon closer examination, it seems to have been shaded entirely with a pencil, except for some white letters.
“There’s something I want to talk to you about, just us two. In five minutes, come see me in my room. Check the nameplates to make sure you don’t get the wrong room, okay? -Sayaka.”
“Oh, I’ve seen people do this on detective shows! When you write, it leaves an imprint. Sketch over the next piece of paper, and you can see the words!” Hina looks excited that she figured it out, then quickly her face drops as she remembers the gravity of the situation.
“So, Sayaka gave the note to Leon, to get him to visit her. But what does she mean about the nameplates? I mean, if he was checking the nameplates, then he would have gone to the room Makoto was in, right?” Yasuhiro asks.
“Perhaps Sayaka switched the nameplates before inviting him over, then switched them back after he was killed. The nameplates are moveable after all, and it is not in direct violation of any school rules.” Celeste looks at Sayaka. “So then, is there anything else we are forgetting?”
Sayaka does not respond.
“Alright then. Makoto, can you review the incident for us, to make sure we have covered everything.”
I take a minute to collect my thoughts, then begin.
“Sayaka invited Leon over last night, after requesting to switch rooms with me. He walked into my room, but the nameplates outside were switched, so he believed it was Sayaka’s. When he arrived, she waited a moment for him to turn around, before stabbing him in the back of his neck. Once he’d fallen to the ground, a pool of blood slowly forming, Sayaka got to work getting rid of evidence. Since she’d been planning this, she had only sat in the corner of the room. She lint-rolled the entire corner, leaving it spotless, and then retraced her steps to make sure she didn’t leave any stray hair behind. Lastly, she needed a way to dispose of her clothes. Searching frantically, she found some bleach in the room, and used it on her shirt. Her skirt and tights were black, and after soaking in the water she prefilled in the sink, it was hard to tell there was any blood at all. Her bowtie was small, so she put it in the toilet, and waited for the water to turn back on at 7 am. Until then, she tried to dry her clothes to the best of her ability, and looked for something to get rid of the smell of bleach and blood, to no avail. The best she could do was put it back in the water to hopefully dilute the stench. At 7 am when the water turned back on, she flushed the bowtie down. While this didn’t clog the toilet immediately, it primed it up for when people came to investigate. Lastly, she knocked on my, well, her door, switched keys, and we went to the dining hall, at around 7:10.When people were late to show up, she went back to her own room, to switch into a clean set of clothes and replaced her bow.”
Sayaka’s face has gone completely pale. She looks distant for a minute, as if she is not here in the room with us, but somewhere else much further away. Then, she snaps back into reality. “There is no proof in anything you have said so far. You have no concrete proof of anything.” Her voice is almost robotic.
“I think I have an idea.” Kyoko turns her gaze from Sayaka to me. “Makoto, according to your story, Sayaka didn’t use the lint-roller until after Leon was dead, correct?”
“Um, yeah, that’s right I think.”
“Then, maybe there is some evidence in the pool of blood. We didn’t search it, but maybe some of Sayaka’s hair is there. That would be concrete evidence.”
“No,” Sayaka is looking at the ground in defeat. “No, don’t bother. I…I did it. I killed Leon.”
“Puhuhuhuhu~ what an interesting development…
…Well class, looks like you’ve reached your verdict . It’s time to cast your votes! Who will be chosen as the blackened? Will you make the right choice? Or the dreadfully wrong one? What’s it gonna be? What’s it gonna beee~?”
“Uh-oh! Looks like you got it right on the money! The blackened in this case, the one that killed Leon, is none other than Sayaka Maizono!”
Everyone in this room voted for Sayaka, so we all expected this result, but still, hearing the confirmation from Monokuma is jarring, to say the least. Even Byakuya looks shaken up.
“So then… you really did it? You killed him?” Chihiro stares at Sayaka, tears forming in her eyes.
“I- I had to. I…” Sayaka begins to cry. Quickly, the look of guilt and grief on her face transforms into one of panic and rage, as if someone had flipped a switch inside of her. “I had to escape! I worked so hard, I worked so so
so
hard… If I accepted staying here, then it would have all been for nothing! And it couldn’t have been! It couldn’t have all… been for nothing.” She collapses on the ground, hands covering her face as she weeps. “And my friends… I couldn’t live this life not knowing if my friends were alive or dead!”
At this point, I can no longer hold back my own tears. I crouch down to where Sayaka has collapsed, trying to comfort her.
“Puhuhuhuhu~ seems my little video worked. Ahaha! Ahahahahahaa!”
“Shut up, will ya?” Mondo turns towards the black and white bear. “I’ll fucking kill you again if I have to.”
“Well now, that would be against the school rules! You wouldn’t want to get punished, would you?
Speaking of punishment, I have prepared a very special punishment for Sayaka Maizono, Ultimate Pop Sensation!”
Sayaka looks up at me, and manages to give me a smile.
“Makoto, I’m sorry. I’m sorry for letting despair cloud my brain, and for framing you. I was so scared- but I’m glad you’re here now, with me. For my final moments.”
“Sayaka, what are you saying?”
“Makoto, please promise me,” Sayaka suddenly grabs my shoulders, pulling me face-to-face with her. “Promise me you will never give up hope. Promise me you will not let Monokuma turn you against your friends. Promise me you will keep fighting for your classmates like how you fought for me.”
“I promise.” I choke the words out, barely more than a whisper.
“Let’s give it everything we’ve got! It’s… PUNISHMENT TIIIIMEE!”
The execution was the final straw. I get as far away as I can from everyone else, before doubling over and vomiting. Hina is quick to follow.
Sayaka Maizono is dead. And I can’t shake the feeling that soon enough, everyone else in this room will be too.