Chiyo Yagami was looking forward to the first day of her final year at Hope's Peak Academy. That is until she is knocked out and transported to what seems to be a campsite in the middle of the woods with her 15 other classmates who she no longer rem...
The four of us stumbled into the trial room, silence looming over us all as we each were filled with indescribable dread.
It's a class trial - our fifth one at that. Sure, facing the murder and execution of your classmates and friends would never be an easy task.
But the fact that Ryoko is the victim of this case just makes it so much more different! How would the girl who claimed that none of us could even touch her end up dead, discarded on the side of the damn clock tower?
Well, if this were a normal class trial, I'd have no idea how to answer that. And to be fair, I still don't. Yet the fact that Ryoko is the victim isn't the only reason behind the uncertainty of this trial.
The fact that Shimura, of all people, is my top suspect makes this case much more bizarre.
I know he wanted to kill her. I know Shimura longed to find the truth behind this game and the reasons why Ryoko did what she did. I know he wanted to avenge not only Akihiro, who he cared so deeply for but every single life that Ryoko tainted.
But, as much as I knew Shimura had to be the killer, part of me still wanted to doubt it. I still wanted to believe that Shimura was just joking, as always.
Yet I had to realise that that would've just been a fantasy.
The real question is how all of this happened. All of this mess - why?!?
Through my frustrated thoughts, I finally caught a glimpse of my surroundings. The trial room was free of its scaffolding, finally prepared and ready after weeks of renovations for the final products.
It felt as if the stage had been set for the biggest and most significant class trial yet.
I also laid my eyes upon Yuna's portrait. Her face haunted me, especially since I hadn't seen her portrait yet.
Not only that, but two other portraits were newly placed in their rightful positions: Kokoro and Ryoko's.
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No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't look at Kokoro's face without the idea of her being a killer flashing into my head. Yet the thoughts of that just seemed unreal. Especially when her face just had that sweet, innocent aura around it.
But the reason for Kokoro's sudden desire for murder was evident in Ryoko's eyes which seemingly lingered over me to torture or mock me for whatever reason. Her cold and soulless eyes were filled with pure sin and evil, and along with her smile, her face just screamed that she would always be up to no good.
And now that she's dead, she can mess with us from beyond the grave. Just great.
My eyes continued to shift around the room before landing on one final portrait.
Shimura's.
His printed glare behind that frame was cold and analytical, but the Shimura I knew was more than that. And Akihiro could definitely attest to that.
I mean, Shimura had a heart. True, it was buried under layers of sarcasm, snark and shitty puns, but it was there and full of love for the people closest to him and his desire to heal and care.
Yes, he wanted revenge against Ryoko. Shimura wanted to kill her. He admitted to it.
So why am I having such a hard time pinning this on him?!? It's clear to me he's behind it. He was covered with evidence last night, for crying out loud!
Then is it that his care for others and his true nature that I've come to know is what is making me want to believe in him, or have I just gone soft?
I guess we'll find out.
"Gah, it's so quiet," Monokuma complained, throwing a fit with his arms crossed at his throne above us all like a toddler. "You do know this is the part where you talk before the trial and act scared! Geez, you guys are all killing me up here from boredom. Do something!"
"How I wish this damn bear would just die already," I mumbled under my breath, rubbing my temples in frustration.
"There's only four of us." Kenjiro reminded him carefully. "We all know what each other is feeling..."
"And we're not great, that's for sure." Satoshi sighed, peeling at his nail polish nervously.
So much for him stressing over his nails.
"A trial without Ryoko's teasing or hints...it's strange," Shouko admitted.
"Come on. It's not like we need her. Especially not with her teasing." I spoke up to reassure her. "We'll solve this. Together. I know we can." I glanced at each one of them.
Satoshi hesitated before firmly nodding, the other two following behind him. "Right. You're right."
"Are you done yet?" Monokuma then dramatically yawned, rubbing his paws together in anticipation. "Yes?" He assumed our answer. "Then great! Let's finally get this trial underway. I have a feeling this one will be absolutely divine! Incredible! Legen-"
"We get it." I coldly cut him off without a care, going to my assigned spot before the bear could even command me to. Satoshi and the others followed suit, and soon, all four of us were ready to face trial.
Although, I never expected that number would change to five as one more person awaited his dramatic entrance to fight for justice along with us.
