Chapter Text
“Okay, we’ve established that the killer put perfume on Nanami’s body,” Tenko said, to restart the conversation. “But where did it come from?”
“Not her room, since Chiaki doesn’t wear perfume. And the killer wouldn’t be able to access the room of another female,” Kaede said thoughtfully. “Not without another Monopad.”
“Akamatsu, this assumes that the killer isn’t female,” Peko immediately said. “It could be possible that the killer took the perfume from their own room.”
“Is this you trying to pin the murder on me again?” Miu asked disbelievingly. “Why are you so set on doing this?”
“Because this is what Chiaki would do,” Peko stated. “She believes in people, by doubting them. In the previous trial, Chiaki faced the possibility of my guilt without flinching. So because you were her close friend, I will pursue your guilt until I reach the full truth!”
“I… I understand why it’s necessary to do this. Still, I will argue for Miu’s innocence!” Tenko exclaimed. “Because I believe that it is important to hear both sides!”
“I can vouch for my own innocence, Tenko!” Miu faced Peko, her head held up high. “Fine, if you want it rough, I’m going to bring it! Starting with this argument: I think the killer brought the perfume from elsewhere!”
“Regardless of the killer’s gender, it might be smarter to use an outside perfume- otherwise, it risks someone recognizing it,” Kaede said. “And I think this is how they do it!”
“I GET IT!”
“It’s possible that the perfume was concocted in the chemistry lab,” Kaede explained. “The non-lethal half of the recipe book has perfume recipes.”
“I guess that’s possible,” Ishimaru said in an uncertain tone. “Still, I feel like there’s a conversation we haven’t finished.”
“The previous topic of conversation was the alarm,” Ryoma said. “The killer used it to make us believe Nanami was still alive. But did this cause the alarm itself?”
“Nanami’s body could have been in the lab at the time. But if Monokuma had caught a living person there, he would have punished them,” Sayaka said. “I don’t think anyone would take that kind of risk.”
In the last trial, the rules added for the area ended up being important. So this time, I should consider the rules of this area: You can’t tamper with the Miracle Machine, and any movement detected in the laboratory triggers an alarm. I need to keep this in mind moving forward!
Nonstop Debate
Truth Bullets: Mini-fridge, Wristwatch and Marble, Recipe Book, Notes on the Body #2, Monokuma Miracle Machine
Korekiyo: “We can’t dismiss the idea that the
Blackened triggered the alarm themselves
.
If it was part of their plan, at least.”
Tenko: “But if the killer died while setting up the plan, then it would make everything they planned pointless!”
Peko: “Then it’s possible that they made sure to eliminate that risk. Perhaps via a remote way to trigger an alarm?”
Miu: “I suppose with enough knowledge, that could be pulled off. But to be clear, I didn’t fucking do it! ”
Sayaka: “You need to work on your arguments, Miu.”
Miu: “C’,mon, a little more help would be appreciated! I don’t want to be left high and dry by my assistant!”
Sayaka: “The alarm could have also been a complete coincidence, caused by no one. The killer could have made use of it, but not planned it.”
I should consider the exact wording of the rules before I decide on the answer. Because this will decide the direction of the trial!
“I AGREE WITH THAT!”
I finally get it. So that’s where that weird thing fits into it!
“Pekoyama is right. A remote setup was used!” Kaede declared.
Peko looked over at Kaede with a surprised expression. “I did not expect you to agree with me. I thought you would jump to Iruma’s defense.”
“I can believe she’s innocent, and also consider the evidence! Like what I just remembered,” Kaede said. “In the empty room, I found that someone had glued a wristwatch to a wall.”
“Not only that, but they also modified the watch with small blades,” Tenko added. “And tied a marble to the watch with a string.”
“It’s a very simple set up: the watch is set to an alarm, and
is
left alone,” Kaede explained. “When the alarm goes off, it also causes the blades to cut the string, making the marble fall to the ground.”
“SAY WHHAAAAT? Are you saying something as light as a marble could have triggered the alarm over the entire area?” Hifumi asked incredulously.
“I see what you are saying now, Kaede. The crafty Blackened read the rule that ‘movement in the laboratory after nighttime would cause an alarm’, and figured that it didn’t have to be human movement,” Korekiyo said, chuckling. “So they created their own alarm to make sure everyone would awaken at the time they wanted.”
“There’s no point in hiding it- that is correct!” Unexpectedly, Monokuma started glowering. “Which is why it makes me so angry that the Blackened used my alarm system for their own purpose. That’s not what it was for!”
Sayaka clenched her fists to her chest. “The killer put a lot of set up in this crime. There must have been something they wanted that desperately. Enough to kill Nanami.”
A somber mood fell onto the trial ground, with the notable exception of a furious Miu. “Not only that, but this fucker betrayed us all. They took the agreement that everyone made and spat at it!”
“It is true. Whatever the Blackened’s motive, they had no issue in stepping over everyone else to reach it,” Peko said quietly. “Such is the nature of this killing game."
“We still don’t know who the killer is, and what they were thinking,” Hifumi said, his shoulders slumped. “Should we really jump to conclusions?”
“You are correct, Hifumi! Because we are still missing a step!” Ishimaru called out. “We don’t know when the killer put their plan into motion!”
“That’s right. We know for a fact that it couldn’t have been after nighttime,” Kaede said. “But we only know that they did it at some point yesterday.”
“Which runs into the core contradiction of this case- all of us have spent the past few days making careful shifts to guard dangerous areas of that lab,” Ryoma said. “Yet somehow, the Blackened found an opening.”
“Then that is our next step in the debate. The Blackened made a point to carefully lay out steps in their plan,” Peko said. “Using modified items in the process. It would be fair to say that Iruma remains the primary suspect.”
“If that’s what you think, then you better have something to back it up!” Miu declared.
Nonstop Debate
Truth Bullets: Sayaka’s Account, Power-lines, Perfume Smell, Early Morning Alarm
Miu: “I wouldn’t dare sully my hands with those pathetic creations! They were clearly created by an amatuer with no sense of taste!”
Peko: “Whoever the killer is, they put together a plan that required many steps in advance . As such, I would say they are intelligent.”
Ishimaru: “The steps included staging the body, triggering an area-wide alarm, and subverting our shift schedule !”
Ryoma: “How the Blackened got around our schedule is the main problem. Is it possible that the killer had an accomplice?
Korekiyo: “But I do not believe an accomplice would stand to gain anything from helping the killer. I believe only the Blackened would get the grand prize?”
Miu: “Hey, Sayaka. Why aren’t you saying anything?”
Sayaka: “Hm? Oh, sorry if I’m not my usual self. But I don’t think I could help with the discussion at hand, that’s all.”
Kaede sent Sayaka a worried expression. Even after everything, she’s still afraid to face what happened. I need to help her face it!
“NO, THAT’S WRONG!”
“Maizono, I can’t let you forget what we discussed. Something did happen, and it could help us solve the case!” Kaede declared.
“Yeah, you aren’t acting like an idol right now! You’re acting like a sad sack!” Miu added.
...Your way of helping still needs a lot of work.
“But everyone is going to know that it’s my fault. It’s my fault that Nanami died,” Sayaka said, trembling. “I couldn’t protect her.”
“Oh, do we have a confession? What an unexpected development!” Monokuma exclaimed with malicious glee.
“No, it doesn’t sound like that. Sayaka, please tell us what you know!” Ishimaru pleaded.
“I fell asleep!” Sayaka cried out. “Right at the beginning of my shift with Nanami, I fell asleep! I left her alone when she needed me the most…”
Tears started streaming down Sayaka’s face. “When I woke up, it was in my room. I realized how badly I messed up, but… I’ve been too afraid to admit it.”
“I understand now, Sayaka! You can’t help but feel that there is something more you could have done,” Ishimaru said, fighting back tears of his own. “But trust me! Feeling that will only leave you feeling guilty, and alone!”
“Wait a moment. Maizono, you told me that you woke up in your room,” Peko said. “But how exactly did you get there?”
“Huh? I th-thought that perhaps Nanami
had
carried me to bed,” Sayaka said, sniffling. “B-because she must have been worried about m-me.”
“That does not seem right to me. If that had happened, I believe that Chiaki would have told someone to get a replacement shift partner,” Peko said, deep in thought. “And I do not remember anyone seeing her carrying you during the night.”
Kaede felt a cold pit to her stomach. “Come to think of it, we also established earlier that the only way to enter another person’s room is with their Monopad. Are you saying that it was someone else that carried Maizono to their room, and used hers?”
Peko nodded. “I believe so. Likely someone that wanted her to be absent during that shift time.”
“But why would someone want her to be gone during that time?” Tenko asked.
During “that” time. I think it’s starting to fall into place. This is yet another part of the Blackened’s plan!
“I GET IT!”
“I have a feeling that this time period is exactly what they were aiming for,” Kaede said. “If the killer wanted to get at Chiaki, then the best way would be to get her alone, by removing her shift partner. And the shift schedule would give the perfect time!”
“Then are you saying that… someone tried to ‘remove’ me?” Horror dawned on Sayaka’s face.
“Everyone, there’s a major problem!” Tenko suddenly cried out. “There’s a problem with the explanation!”
“Tenko, don’t be afraid to tell us,” Kaede said with an encouraging tone. “We’ve come this far by sharing our thoughts, and working together.”
“And yet even now, there is someone trying to sabotage us from within,” Gundham observed. “Just as they did before.”
Nonstop Debate
Truth Bullets: Bottle without Label, Chemical Recipebook, Dumbwaiter, Sweat Traces
Hifumi: “So what exactly is this problem you noticed, Miss Chabashira?”
Tenko: “So far, it seems like the theory is that the killer waited for Maizono to become incapcitated. Is that right?”
Miu: “Duh, Tencrotch! If they didn’t do that, then they wouldn’t have been able to sneak into the laboratory without anyone seeing them?”
Tenko: “But how did they know that Maizono would fall asleep at that particular time? That seems like
too much of a coincidence!
”
Hifumi: “There really wouldn’t be a way to know when someone falls asleep, is there? That timer from earlier wouldn’t be able to affect that.”
Gundham: “My Third Eye can see what mortals can’t, but I certainly wouldn’t abuse it for such foul purposes!”
I see the issue that Tenko is talking about. Even the smartest person wouldn’t be able to predict that. Unless… they used a certain method to do it.
At last, the method behind the mystery unveiled itself to Kaede. This is what will lead to the killer. I know it!
“NO, THAT’S WRONG!”
Kaede took a moment to process what she was about to suggest. Once she opened her mouth, everything would change.
“Don’t fall quiet now, Kaeidiot!” Miu snapped.
“It’s just that… if the problem is that it can’t be a coincidence, then maybe it wasn’t,” Kaede suggested in a shaky voice. “Maybe the killer intentionally made Maizono fall unconscious.”
“What dark magicks do you believe were used to accomplish this?” Gundham asked.
“A concoction from the recipe book.” Kaede said. “There are both lethal and non-lethal recipes in here. It’s possible that someone gave Maizono some kind of sleeping potion.”
“Several pages are missing from this recipe book, as are the table of contents!” Tenko added. “Someone clearly didn’t want people to figure something out!”
“When would someone have had the chance to do that?” Sayaka looked like she was about to be sick. “I don’t remember eating anything that tasted weird.”
Suddenly, Tenko gasped out loud. “No, it can’t be! Did the one responsible really do it during that time?”
Not long after, Peko’s face went deathly pale. “It would be the perfect chance to get at a specific target. Yet, did I truly miss it happening?”
“Could either of you please speak more clearly?” Miu asked in an irritated tone.
It hit Kaede next, and she felt like the world had gone dark around her. “They mean during the Neo Aikido training session that happened last night. To make sure everyone stayed hydrated, several glasses of water were prepared.”
“They were labeled with a person’s name, so no one would drink someone else’s water. But if someone wanted to spike Sayaka’s drink, then they’d only need to get to the glass with her name on it!” Ishimaru cried out, horrified.
“Come to think of it, I started feeling sleepy after that training session,” Sayaka said slowly. “But since I had just done a lot of physical activity, I didn’t think much of it.”
“Consider also this. If it’s true that someone spiked your drink, they could have easily done it with poison,” Korekiyo said. “And killed you without you even realizing it. But why didn’t they?”
“Did I come that close to dying?” Sayaka looked to be on the verge of tears.
“From an entirely pragmatic point of view, killing Maizono would be a red flag. It would alert people that someone wanted her out of the way,” Peko said. “But by drugging her to sleep, they were able to make her doubt herself, and make her not want to talk, for fear of being suspected.”
“But is it really possible to be able to sneak past two skilled martial artists? They likely have 360 degree vision between them!” Hifumi asked in his dramatic voice.
“It would be if their attention was focused on training other people,” Kaede pointed out. “After all, even martial artists are only human. They can’t see behind themselves- so the killer probably spiked the drink during a training session!”
“...It is at this point that I must point out an issue,” Ryoma said, putting his hands in his pockets. “One that threatens this entire theory.”
“Okay Ryoma, lay it on me,” Kaede said, ready for whatever he would say.
“This comes back to a previous issue. How did the killer subvert the shift schedule?” Ryoma asked. “There were people protecting both the Miracle Machine and that chemistry laboratory for every day we’ve been in this area.”
“Mr. Hoshi, if I’m not mistaken, you were alone in the chemistry laboratory.” Hifumi pointed out. “When most others were at the training session.”
“Hmph. I know what I said,” Ryoma stated simply. “But I am not concerned for myself.”
That is true. For the past few days, we have guarded the dangerous areas around the clock. Well, maybe except for…
“Maybe not the first day,” Kaede said, thinking out loud. “The first day we were in this area, we didn’t have any shifts. The rule barring people from entering the laboratory at night wasn’t even in place back then.”
“I guess you’re right, but why are you talking about something that far back?” Ishimaru asked, confused. “We’re talking about the killer getting past the schedule yesterday!”
“Ke he he. Your thinking is too simple, Ishimaru. You seem to be going by the assumption that the killer made the plan the same day they executed it,” Korekiyo said, amused. “But this scheme required an intimate knowledge of the area. So perhaps the killer began forming their plan that very first day.”
Korekiyo held his arms out. “The Blackened might have taken some sleeping potion that first day, and held onto it, wondering to themselves if they should use it. In the end, they fell into temptation… but even such a fall has its own beauty!”
“So this fucker could have been planning to betray us from the start!” Miu snapped. “But who are they?”
“Let’s lay out what we know,” Peko said, intensely focused. “The Blackened could have entered the laboratory on the first day to make the concoctions for their plan. This same person made a set up that made us think Chiaki was alive at a point she wasn’t.”
“As part of this plan, they may have drugged Maizono,” Ryoma added. “And it is also someone able to carry Nanami on their own.”
Suddenly, a loud thudding sound echoed through the courtroom. “Hey, don’t destroy trial stands!” Monokuma yelled.
The loud thudding sound happened again, and it turned out to be Tenko slamming her hands against her stand. “I get it now! I know who the killer is!”
“Okay, but maybe calm down first?” Kaede suggested, because fury was coming off of Tenko in waves.
“How can I calm down? I just realized something that is making me infuriated!” Tenko shouted.
“Before you lose your head, explain your reasoning,” Peko said, shooting Tenko a serious gaze. “Otherwise, you may lose your argument.”
“Look, we’re saying the killer spiked Maizono’s drink, right? Then they must have done the same to Nanami’s drink at some point!” Tenko exclaimed heatedly. “That way, she couldn’t fight back when they killed her!”
“You suddenly sound like you know what you are talking about, and that’s rare,” Miu said. “Where did this come from?”
“I’m very familiar with these disgusting tactics,” Tenko said, her eyes cold. “And I’m angry with myself for not seeing it sooner!”
It sounds like Tenko is completely serious, so I should seriously consider her idea. The Blackened was able to do everything listed above, and was in a position to be able to spike Chiaki’s drink.
Kaede’s eyes widened. I think Tenko is right. When I think about it, there is only one person that fits this description!