Danganronpa Midnight: Lantern Lament (Fanganronpa)

Purgatory 2

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Last Night

"What...The...Hell?!?"

That was all Tatsuo could exclaim as he found himself deep in the forest, surrounded by thick bushes and low-hanging branches he ducked to avoid.

He was running, without a single moment to breathe or think. Only one word kept flashing in his mind.

Survive.

He had no choice but to run. If Tatsuo wanted to have a chance of living, he had to.

Yukari was right on his tail, knife gripped firmly in her hand. She definitely wasn't as fast as him, but with her shorter and thinner stature, it was much easier for her to manoeuvre around the woods without much need to duck or dodge.

It felt like they had been going at it for ages. Every so often, Yukari would get a solid slash at Tatsuo, but he'd just push her away as fast as she had gotten to him. Despite their lengthy confrontation, it seemed like Yukari was willing to continue until she saw the boy in front of her dead.

With this newfound passion and bloodlust, Yukari took the knife with both hands. After having a running start, she leapt, managing to mount Tatsuo and get him on the floor under her with a grunt.

One of her legs was situated at each side of him and she kneeled on top of him, the weapon now raised in her hands. Tatsuo tried to grip her wrists, clenching his teeth trying to figure out the best way to reason with her.

"Why...?" He panted. "W-Why the hell are you doing this?!?"

"..." Yukari paused for a moment at the question. With this slim opportunity, Tatsuo attempted to push the girl off of him.

However, the second she realised what was happening, she doubled down. Yukari lifted her foot and planted it right on Tatsuo's chest, pushing him back down.

"Just...Shut up!" She cried, her hands slightly trembling. "Shut up...Shut up! Just shut the fuck up! You'd never understand!"

With that and closed eyes, Yukari plunged the knife down. Upon hearing it make an impact with the sound of the blade penetrating his flesh, she smiled - clearly pleased with herself.

But when she went to open her eyes, that's when she noticed. She hadn't stabbed Tatsuo in his face or chest...but his hand.

He shut his eyes and tried his best the bear the pain, blood dripping down onto his face from the wound.

It had been a last-minute instinct. Tatsuo had raised his right hand to defend his face due to the rest of his body being restrained, but in doing so, ended up injuring his main hand.

"H-Huh?" She stammered after seeing she had failed.

With this open window of opportunity, Tatsuo raised his leg, pushing Yukari off of him with much force. She was sent rolling into a puddle of mud, giving Tatsuo enough time to get back up and run once more.

Once he reached a reasonable distance away from her, Tatsuo placed his right hand on a nearby tree to catch his breath momentarily. However, upon impact, he groaned in pain.

"Shit..." he said through distressed breaths. Tatsuo glanced down at the wound and realised how bad it really was. "This is...worse than I thought."

"There you are."

Tatsuo's moment of slight peace was interrupted by Yukari now covered in mud and dirt, charging at him full force, knife pointed straight at him.

Their battle continued with Tatsuo mostly just dodging Yukari's frequent attacks until he managed to grab her arms and face her.