Anguish & Desire/Chapter Thirteen

This is Chapter Thirteen of Danganronpa: Anguish & Desire, Escape Time!. In this chapter, Ken contemplates his future in the killing school life & MonoMech decides to prove himself.

Author's Note : ''"By getting involved with others and making memories, hope, which is more important than talent, is born." - ''Chiaki Nanami, the Ultimate Gamer.

After going to sleep early last night, it was only natural that I found myself up and about early this morning. I woke up an hour prior to my schedule meet-up with Nakata, so, I might as well do what I do best: explore.

This school -- putting whether or not it is actually Hope’s Peak Academy or not aside -- is luscious, beautiful, and above all, huge. This has to be a private school of kind...where only the richest of the rich can attend...needless to say, my middle school was the exact opposite.

It was more like a shed, with holes in the wooden floors and with molding ceilings...it was definitely not a pretty sight. But, it was the perfect place for someone like me. Someone who only knew that lifestyle.

I’ve never had my own bed before, let alone my own room...I always shared with Touka. We were both small, skinny kids, so a twin-sized bed was enough, but it would always feel so crowded...that wasn’t ever a bad thing, though. We couldn’t afford a working heater, or air conditioning, so having someone to keep you warm at night was about the only thing that would prevent you from freezing up and dying in your own bed. The only qualm I’ve ever had about sharing a room was that I’d never get my own privacy...but still, looking back on that run-down old apartment, I’d trade anything to be back there.

To be able to kiss my mom on the head, or to protect Touka from the people who would target us...god, what I would give to be with them.

I’d do anything...well, except for what we’re supposed to do.

Kill.

I...I’d never be able to kill anyone.

I’m not that kind of person…

...I’m sure that’s exactly what Tani thought, up until she slit Yosano’s throat, huh?

Okay, stop Ken. Just...stop thinking.

I need to continue looking for an exit.

It’s a pain how dark it is on the second floor of this school all the time, though. Much like the water, the lights on the second floor and in the hallways goes out until the morning announcement. But, this is probably the best time to go exploring, while whoever’s controlling MonoMech is asleep, and while the rest of my classmates are too. The less people making noise at this time, the better.

So, here I am in Classroom 2-A, standing in front of the metal plate that covers the window. I was always figured that maybe there was a release latch hidden on it, but, sadly that doesn’t seem to be the case.

“Pointless, isn’t it?”

I sigh to myself and shake my head. “There’s no way there’s a hole to escape through, is there?”

I turn away from the metal plate, and take one more look around the classroom.

The classrooms themselves are...super ordinary. There’s a big, green locker next to each of the teacher desks and other than that, all of the desks are super rusty and broken.

Now that I think about it, I haven’t checked out the locker at all…

...I might as well.

I put my hands in my jean pockets and creep to the slightly-open locker, and, with one push with my foot, it flew open…

...and, on the floor of the locker, sat a pair of pink headphones.

“Are these...Yuka’s?”

I bend down to pick them up, and, as I do so, I also notice a...decent amount of pink hair sitting next to it.

…

“Y-Yuka…?”

Yuka? Yuka?

W-Where is she?

Did something happen last night when I went to sleep last night?

Is Yuka okay--?

“No, she’s gotta be okay. You’re overreacting, Ken. Calm down, she probably...she probably just dropped these.”

I’ll just bring these back to her...that’s what I’ll do.

So, I pick up her headphones, and I begin my walk back down to our rooms.

The first floor is just as desolate as the second floor, if not a little less. I follow the checkered-pattern floor to the dorms, and once there, I go to the end of the hallway and stand n front of Yuka’s room.

“She’s probably sleeping, ain’t she?”

And, like clockwork, the door next to Yuka’s slides open, and she walks out.

Her right eye is covered by her pitch-black hair, and her left eye pierces mine. She wears a black tanktop and black gym shorts as well. Madoka Nakata.

...is she gonna get mad at me for being out past curfew?

It’s okay, I’ll come up with a good excuse.

I smile and place my hand on the back of my head. “Good morning, Nakata.”

She nods. “Ken, what brings you out here?”

“I was actually just returning these to Yuka.”

She looks at the headphones for a split second before shrugging her shoulders. “She was looking for those earlier.”

“Ah, was she?”

She nods again. “Still, at this hour? You couldn't wait until breakfast?”

“I didn’t think about that, Nakata. Sorry.”

She shakes her head. “Don’t be sorry. Let’s just get our training on for today, okay? How’s your hand feeling?”

I flash a smile at her and lift my hand in front of her face. “All better! I think I’m ready to take you down today.”

Her deadpan expression shifts into a smirk, and she grabs my hand with hers. “Let’s see what you got then, rabbit.”

Okay, I see you Nakata.

“Scared, are we?”

“Petrified.”

“What? Is this your hundredth loss in a row, Ku-chan?”

“I think I teased her too much beforehand, Azama...it was a massacre.”

“Don’t play with fire, you might just get burned, Ken.”

“Nakata, don’t start teasing Big Brother Ken too--!”

I open my eyes and raise my head from the table. In front of me are the staring eyes of Satoshi, Azama, and Nakata, while to my left sits Yuka (who is now wearing her pink headphones), and to my right sits Sasada.

“He’s improving though, slightly,” Nakata says, nodding her head. “He’s doing well.”

“I wonder if it’s possible to even come close to you though, Nakata,” Satoshi says, nodding to himself. “Probably not, no.”

“If anything, I’d like to see Shimazaki or Tomori take a swing at me. The two of them look like exceptional athletes.”

“Yeah, Mio’s really fit,” I say. “She’s really strict with her training, too.”

“If only she weren’t so far up Obinata’s ass,” Azama sighs.

“That reminds me, why are you here?” Sasada asks, her eyes shifting from Yuka to Azama. “I’m not complaining, but aren’t you one of Obinata’s goons.”

“Is that what you all think we are?”

Azama almost looks offended by Sasada’s words. I mean, I do like both Azama and Nakamoto, but at the end of the day, they’ll side with Obinata over the rest of us, so I wouldn’t say that Sasada’s not unjustified in her...unique word choice.

“My words, not anyone else’s.”

“Well, I’m only with them because of Shiho, and even then, those three exclude us a lot.”

“What do you mean?” Nakata asks.

“It means exactly what it sounds like. I’m sure here it’s the same, a big group within a small group, et cetera. Those three are just super close, and they’re always together and really secretive.”

Satoshi gasps. “Do you think that they’re planning something…? Like, a murd--”

“N-No, nothing like that,” Azama says, brushing Satoshi’s comment off. “Only one person could leave anyway, so the other two would be wasting their time...I think.”

“That ‘I think’ just made me ten times more nervous, y’know.”

“Sorry, Satoshi.”

“Don’t be so paranoid though, I doubt anything bad will happen anyways,” Sasada mumbles to herself. “If you can adapt, you can survive...and we’re all adapting quite well, I believe.”

“Why do you guys keep adding uncertainties to the end of your sentences?!”

“Sorry again, Satoshi.”

Satoshi sighs. “This would be so much easier if you guys could give me something to work with...gosh, I need to go lie down.”

“Are you okay?” Yuka asks, poking at whatever’s left on her plate...I think it’s a mango, or a pear, or something like that. “You seem nervous.”

He brushes her off and scratches the back of his head. “I’m fine, Yuka. I couldn’t get any sleep last night and I’m starting to get a little on-edge. I’ll check in with you guys later, okay?”

...is he sure he’s okay?

“Feel better, Satoshi!” I exclaim, and he turns to me with a faint smile on his face.

“Thanks, Ken. If you wanna swing by in a bit, I wouldn’t mind some company.”

Yuka rises to her feet. “No way! Why is everyone stealing Big Brother Ken?! When do we get to have some alone time?!”

I smile and Satoshi giggles. “Why don’t you come over tonight then, Ken? You and Yuka can play all day today.”

I nod. “Sounds like a plan.”

Yuka sighs and sits back down. “Fine.”

Azama chuckles before leaning forward. “I’d go before Tomori finds you, Satoshi, or else she’ll carry you like a bride back to your room.”

“That’s probably a good idea.”

After Satoshi departed, we went along business as usual until I, as well as Yuka, went back to my room.

Now, the two of us lay on our stomachs, our heads next to each other, and with her ipod playing some weird, techno music. I didn’t quite understand it myself, but apparently Yuka had produced it herself.

“It’s about time I got you all to myself, Big Brother Ken!” she pouts. “Between Kitoaji, Nakata, and now Nakamoto & Satoshi, you never make time for your best friend!”

I smile and lower my head to nudge her shoulder. “I’m sorry, Yuka.”

“But, today is the day! We’re going to destroy the world together!”

“You’re not planning anything dangerous, are you?”

She shrugs her shoulders and looks away from me. “Oh, little miss me?! Never! I’m too small to be dangerous.”

Okay, now I’m even more skeptical.

As her eyes fall back onto mine, a grin flashes across her face and she lets a strand of pink hair fall in front of her face. “I’m serious! Nothing too dangerous!”

“You said ‘too’, didn’t you?”

“Did I?”

What’re you planning, Yuka…?

She jumps to her feet, rocking the bed as she balances herself. Once there, she puts her hands into the air and screams. “Operation ‘Hook-Big-Brother-Ken-Up-With-Kitoaji’ commences tonight!”

“No.”

She gasps and falls backward onto the bed. “Why not?”

“Because, no.”

“But you like Kitoaji!”

“D-Don’t say something so stupid, Yuka!”

“Just yesterday you told me Kitoaji reminded you of a pack of puppies.”

Well, because they do.

Yuka, please stop...please.

“Y-Yeah, but--”

“And the day before that, you told me Kitoaji was ‘literally the cutest person you’ve ever--”

I shut my eyes and cover my ears...I can’t handle this anymore. “Yuka, please!”

She sighs and nods. “Fine, Big Brother Ken.”

I remove my hands from my ears and shake my head. I can feel my face get redder as I turn back to face Yuka, whose head is tilted, and whose eyes are narrowed, staring into my soul. She grabs the pillow at the head of my bed and puts it on her lap. “I mean, even if I like Rai, what’s to say they feel the same? In a situation like this...how do I know I can trust ‘em, I mean?”

“Do you think Kitoaji would betray you?”

“N-No,” I say, shaking my head. “Not that.”

“Then what is it?”

I didn’t want to say it, but...I couldn’t keep it in. “Can I trust Rai not to die?”

“Big Brot--”

“I’m sorry Yuka, I said too much didn’t I?”

She shakes her head and squeezes the pillow in her lap. “I asked too much.”

Yuka rolls off of my bed, landing on her feet as she did so. I only watch as Yuka takes her ipod, and skips to my door. Before she opens it though, she turns to me, her smile widening as she opens her mouth...it’s genuine, tender. “If you asked Big Sister Chie though, I think she woulda told you not to let the stuffed toy get to you. She would’ve told you to go for it; to live in the moment! If Big Sister Chie was alive, nothing would’ve stopped her from getting who she loved! No killing game, nothing!” She opens the door, before taking a quick bow. “Let’s play later, Big Brother Ken. The tension is way too high for us to do anything fun, so, let’s get Kitoaji and go somewhere fun, ‘kay?”

I nod and offer a parting smile. “It’s a promise.”

She nods, closing the door behind her before letting one final sentence. “Love you, Big Brother Ken!”

And with that, the door shuts, and I’m left alone lying in my bed.

I’m sure…

...no, I know Yuka’s right.

Yosano would’ve spit in this stupid game’s face and did whatever she wanted to do. She would’ve protected us, loved us, trusted us...and we could’ve done the same. We should’ve done the same. All of us.

Instead, we bickered. We fought. And, it drove Tani to murder.

But, can I do it?

Can I drop everything that Mio, Obinata, Shiho said and trust that they won’t or that anyone won’t kill someone, or should I trust what Saishi, Yuka, and Sasada have been saying...that no one would hurt or kill their friends. I really don’t know.

I got really close to Yosano, and look what happened.

If I continue to get really close to Rai, Nakata, and Yuka...will the same happen to them? If they got hurt, what would become of me? I-I don’t wanna lose anyone else.

I sigh and sit up in the bed. “I don’t wanna choose.”

“I wanna go home...I want everyone to go home.”

I bring my knees to my chest, and bury my head in my arms. What should I do…? Why can’t Yosano just tell me…? She’d know everything.

It was dinnertime, and, usually everyone is in the dining hall enjoying some sort of meal. Even if we didn’t eat actively as a group, it’s still normally a lot more crowded than...this.

Rai, Azama, and myself sit by our lonesome in the dining hall, eating some cooked vegetables that Azama made for us.

“I wonder where everyone else is…” Azama sighs. “I even told Shiho I was making dinner for him tonight, that sleaze.”

“Did something happen between you?” Rai asks, tilting their head.

She shakes her head and groans. “No, at least I don’t think. Is my cooking that bad, Ku-chan?”

I shrug my shoulders, pulling the fork away from my mouth. “I don’t think so...?”

It’s not that it tastes bad, everything tastes better than home, but Sasada’s cooking will forever be the best.

Azama looks down to the table. “It is that bad, isn’t it?”

...I should’ve worded that better.

“That’s not what I meant, Azama!”

“It’s still weird that no one’s here,” Rai says. “Even Saishi skipped.”

“It’s lonely,” Azama says. “But, I haven’t spoken to you two alone in a while.”

“Not since before the trial,” Rai recalls, gripping my arm.

Ah, I remember that, when Azama, Shiho so violently and personally attacked us and accused us of being the culprits...that brings...really bad memories.

“I need to offer an apology to the both of you...for the way I treated you. It was uncalled for, and I need to make it up to you both.”

“N-No, don’t worry too much about it,” Rai says.

“Yeah, it was a...scary situation,” I say, nodding my head. “There’s no reason to be sorry.”

She shakes her head. “I really do need to apologize though. So, from the bottom of my heart, I’m sorry. I’m sorry for accusing you, Kitoaji, and I’m sorry for all the rude things I said to you, Ken.”

“Really, it’s okay--”

Rai’s swiftly cut off from the sound of the dining hall doors opening, which was quickly followed by a shriek.

“THEY’RE IN SO MUCH TROUBLE--!”

The three of us are quick to turn to the dining hall entrance where Tomori stands, bent over, breathing heavily.

“Tomori?!” Azama calls out, rising from her seat. “What happened?”

Rai and I follow Azama’s lead as she rushes over to Tomori.

“What happened?” she repeats, and Saishi looks up to us, her face pale, her eyes wide.

“MonoMec--MonoMech’s going to kill them--! We need to do something!”

Kill them--?!

“Going to kill who?!” Rai asks.

“Come with me--!”

With those parting words, Tomori turns around, and breaks off into a sprint out of the dining hall and into the hallway.

“I guess we should follow her,” Rai mumbles, and Azama & I simultaneously nod.

We chase after Tomori, and, she leads us up the stairs, and to the entrance of the bathhouse. She stops before the entrance, and turns back to the three of us, panting heavily.

Rai and Azama are both out of breath as well, and Rai rests their head on my shoulder as we catch our breath.

“In here…” Tomori mumbles, before pulling the door to the bathhouse open.

Inside, we’re met by the backs of Nakata, Yuka, Shiho, Sasada, Shiomi, Satoshi, and Saishi.

The sound of the door closing gets the attention of Saishi and Sasada, who both turn to us, and the latter breathes a sigh of relief.

“Thank god you guys are here,” she says as Tomori squeezes her way to the front of the row. “Something bad has happened.”

“What happened?” Azama asks, and Sasada shrugs her shoulders.

“See for yourself.”

Azama, Rai and I squeeze our way to the corner of the changing room -- which is free of all people -- and together we take a look at what everyone else is staring at.

On their knees, with their mouths gagged, is Nakamoto, Obinata, and Mio.

…

“W-What the fuck is going on?!” I nearly yell, and, like magic, a stupid stuffed toy appears with a machete in it’s hand.

“Well, if Ken’s shouting, that means everyone’s here, right?”

“What is this...?” Satoshi asks. “Why have you gathered us here?”

“And more importantly, what did you do to them?!” Saishi exclaims. “You can’t just...kidnap people!”

“But I didn’t kidnap them,” MonoMech explains. “They were found breaking the rules, plain and simple.”

I-I don’t even know how to process what’s going on anymore--!

Nakamoto’s eyes are wide, staring into the ground...his whole body is shaking, he looks absolutely petrified.

Obinata’s body remains still, and his eyes follow MonoMech, who walks up and down in front of the three.

Mio, on the other hand, looks like she’s about to literally explode. Not with angst or fear though, no, more with anger.

“What rules did they break?!” Saishi exclaims. “Nothing that’s worth--this!”

“Oh, but it is!”

“What rule did they break?” Shiho asks, tilting his head. “I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary.”

“They broke rule number one, the most important rule! They were trying to intentionally break school property!”

“And, how did they try to do that?” Sasada asks.

“With, well, this!”

MonoMech disappears through the door leading to the bath, before coming back only half a second later with…

…

“Is that a fucking propane tank?!” Tomori exclaims, her voice teetering on full-out screaming.

“Why, yes it is!” MonoMech exclaims, holding a small gray container, labeled ‘Flammable’, and, in his other hand, holds his...really sharp machete and a lighter. “With Mio’s lighter, they were going to make this tank go BOOM and try to escape! They were taking advantage of my niceness--I knew I should’ve installed a camera in this room!”

“W-Where did they even get a propane tank?!” Satoshi asks, his voice an octave higher than the usual. “I haven’t seen them around!”

“Probably because you haven’t cooked much,” Sasada says. “In the kitchen there’s three or four propane tanks next to the stove.”

“Ding, ding, Ukon!” MonoMech exclaims, placing the lighter and propane tank to the side. Once he was done, with one swift motion, he jumps behind Nakamoto, and places his machete to his throat--earning a muffled yelp from the Ultimate Host...even Yuka screams at the sight. “I could, and should, slice the three of their throats and show the rest of you a lesson...you can’t defy me.”

“But, you can’t.”

“Hmm?”

I look down the aisle toward the source of the voice, and Nakata takes a step forward. “They technically didn’t break any rules, so, you can’t punish them for something they could’ve hypothetically done.”

I was so mesmerized by Nakamoto’s groans and cries for help through the gag, that I almost didn’t grasp onto what Nakata said.

“T-That’s right! They didn’t break any rule, so you can’t punish them!”

MonoMech’s devilish smirk widens as he lowers the machete from Nakamoto’s throat. “Correct.”

Nakamoto drops forward, and his groans are suppressed by the sounds of his choked up tears.

“Be grateful someone informed me of your plot before it came to a triple execution, you stupid millennials!”

MonoMech steps forward and takes the gag out of Obinata’s mouth, who only takes a deep breath...I shouldn’t have expected much of a reaction from him anyways, I guess. He’s way too hard to read.

As he moves on to Mio, MonoMech pauses and looks back to Obinata. “Have anything to say, Zeshin?”

Obinata wipes his forehead with the back of his hand. “It won’t happen again.”

“You’re right....it won’t.”

I’ve never heard four words filled with more malice than those four.

With just four words, and one loud gasp from Obinata, there was no way to process or even attempt to do anything about what was to happen next…

With one swift movement of the blade, MonoMech slices his machete across Mio’s stomach, and as a painful shriek is heard from behind her gag, blood spurts out of her wound as MonoMech pulls away.

… ...

“MIO-CHI?!”

After a brief moment of silence and confusion, Nakamoto’s pained scream sparked the panic and screams of everyone who was watching.

As for me, I--I froze. As Rai clings to my arm, burying their face in my back, I can only just watch in fear as her eyes began to close and her body began to fall.

Obinata jumps forward, catching the falling Mio in his arms. “M-Mio?!”

Nakata, too, springs forward, placing her hand on Mio’s throat.

“I-Is she dead?!” Tomori asks, her face dropping as she said those words.

“No--!” Obinata exclaims, squeezing onto Mio’s body. “Sh-She’s not--!”

“We need to get her to the nurse’s office,” Nakata says, before looking back toward the group of us who could only just bare to watch. “Someone, go!”

“R-Right!” Satoshi exclaims, before turning around, and sprinting out of the bathhouse.

“Tomori, help me lift her,” Nakata continues, and Tomori nods and springs forward. “Obinata, move.”

As Tomori pushes Obinata away from Mio, Nakata spins Mio onto her back and lifts her by her shoulders, while Tomori grabs Mio’s legs, and lifts at the same time.

“Move out of the way, please!” Tomori shouts, and the three who were standing by the door -- Shiho, Saishi, and Yuka, quickly scatter away from the entrance.

As Nakata and Tomori carry Mio out of the bathhouse, leaving a small trail of blood behind them, Sasada, and Obinata both file out as well, electing to follow the two...and, that left the rest of us.

Shiho, Shiomi, Yuka, Rai, Nakamoto, Azama, Saishi, and myself remained in the bathhouse, with nothing but the sound of the muffled crying of both Yuka and Rai to keep us company.

But, soon enough, Shiomi -- wearing nothing but a frown -- left. Shiho, Azama, and Yuka were quick to follow, and then there were four.

Rai dug their face into my back, and I could feel their tears break through my thin shirt. Nakamoto remained on the floor, lying face first on the wood, his body still shaking. Saishi...he looked like he was about to scream.

I couldn’t force myself to move, let alone even try to choke up any words…

...Mio just died. She was just murdered in front of our eyes.

W-What am I saying--?! She’s not dead! Nakata...she wouldn’t have tried to save her if there wasn’t a change!

“Let’s not get too down, my friends,” Saishi says. I don’t know if he knows his own voice is quivering like it is. “Let’s wait in the cafeteria for now, shall we?”

“I need to dispose of the propane tank…” MonoMech sighs. “I’ll catch up with y’all later--”

“What is wrong with you?!” Nakamoto screeches, jumping to his feet. “We didn’t break the rules--why’d you slice Mio-chi?!”

“I needed to make an example of one of you,” MonoMech explains. “Why not the crazy bitch!”

Nakamoto’s tears stop flowing, and, his face opts for a bright red. “What did you just fucking call her?”

“What? Have you gone deaf?”

Nakamoto raises his fist, and, he leaps forward toward MonoMech.

I don’t know why my body moves on it’s own like it does, but, before I knew it I was standing in between Nakamoto and MonoMech. And, before I knew it, Nakamoto’s fist was connecting with my face.

…

I feel numb.

“K-Ken-chi?!”

Nakamoto’s voice echoes throughout my head as I fall to the floor.

I hear MonoMech click his tongue behind me. “Kei, violence against the headmaster is forbidden! You’re lucky Ken stopped you, or you’d have a spear in your abdomen right about now--!”

“Are you okay, Ken?!” Saishi exclaims.

“Your eye’s swollen, Ken,” Rai says...I can hear it in their voice, they’re nervous, but in this situation...who could blame them.

“Ken-chi, a-are you okay?!” Nakamoto asks again, and I slowly look up at him. He’s looking down at me, his fist still shaking, his eyes still wide. “I didn’t mean to, Ken-chi!”

I nod my throbbing head. “I know.”

“Let’s get some ice to put on your eye, Ken,” Saishi says. “We can wait for a report on Shimazaki there, too!”

“Y-Yeah, let’s do it,” Rai says. “I think we could all use something to cool us off, anyhow.”

And so, Nakamoto, Rai, Saishi, and myself travel to the dining hall, and when we get there, it turns out we weren’t the only ones with the same idea.

Tomori and Yuka sit next to one another, and Yuka’s head rests on Tomori’s shoulder. On the opposite end of the same table, Azama and Shiho sit together, dejectedly lying their heads on the table. Even Shiomi is in the dining hall, although he sits alone, staring at a wall.

DING DONG BING BONG

W-What is that…?

“Excuse me students, it is officially 10:00 P.M.! That means it’s nighttime! The water will turn off in a few minutes, and don’t forget to lock your doors! We wouldn’t want anyone dying again tonight, would we? Puhuhuhu! Sleep tight!”

Ah, the nighttime announcement.

It...doesn’t feel right to go back to our rooms not knowing what happened to Mio.

So, we waited. We waited and waited and waited and waited and waited and waited.

We waited for two hours in complete silence, with Rai’s hand in mine, and with my Nakamoto and Saishi in a silent prayer...but, no one said a word.

That was, until, the dining hall doors finally opened, and both Nakata and Satoshi walked through.

Like they were judges in a courtroom, their presences were enough to force the rest of us to our feet. “Is everyone here?” Satoshi asks, tilting his head.

“Y-Yes,” Tomori nods.

Satoshi smiles a smile that could put anyone to ease and places his hand over his heart. “I’m glad...Shimazaki’s going to be so happy to hear how much everyone cares.”

She’s going to be--?

“Does that mean she’s alive?!” Shiho asks, placing his hands on the back of his head. “S-She made it?!”

“She made it,” Nakata confirms. “We were lucky enough that Sasada and her both had B+ blood types...we would’ve been in trouble if they weren’t.”

That’s the Ultimate Mercenary for you, ain’t it?!

“That’s great news, Nakata,” I say, and Rai nods from beside me.

“Isn’t it?” Azama asks, taking a deep breath. “I was so worr--”

DING DONG BING BONG

W-What--?! But, the nighttime announcement already--

“Excuse me, excuse me! I’m sorry to interrupt you children, but would all available students please come to the gymnasium please? It’s tiiiime for a motive!”