『 ♧ Escape Artist ♧ 』『 RANMARU KAGEYAMA × DANGANRONPA V3 』

CHAPTER 1-5: Investigation

3RD PERSON POV:

"What in the world!? What the hell is going on!?" Kaito yelled out.

"This... this is.. h- how..?" Ranmaru said, unable to form his words entirely. Tenko instinctively let out a blood curdling scream. After a few seconds, the doors to the library flung open, and the remaining people in the game room came in.

"Wh- What happened? Gonta hear scre- WAAAAAAAAH!?! Blood, so much blood..!!!" Gonta cried out as he joined the crowd forming around Rantaro's corpse.

"Huhhh?? Isn't that Rantaro? What's wrong with him?" Angie asked, dumbfounded. She looked to a certain person for answers, but that person remained in shock and guilt.

"He's dead." Maki stated bluntly. As they continued to talk and panic about how this could have happened, Ranmaru couldn't look away from the body.

'How... just a minute ago... he was OK..? H- he.. he can't be... no- nobody could've killed him.... then.. how..?' Ranmaru thought. As everyone panicked and Shuichi checked Rantaro's breathing, Ranmaru didn't... no, he couldn't utter a single word.

"So this means the killing game has started, huh?" Maki said to the group, catching their attention.

"W-wait! Maybe not!" Kaede interjected. Most of them looked to her in confusion at how she could deny the killing game had started with a corpse 2 meters away from her.

"Maybe the killing game hasn't started... maybe... this just ended it." Kaede deduced with a look of worry and nausea spreading on her face. "...the mastermind.. Rantaro was the mastermind!"

Hearing this, Ranmaru snapped out of his thought and looked in disbelief at what she had just said. 'You're... you're seriously accusing Rantaro..?'

"T-the Mastermind!?" Kaito repeated with surprise.

"Are you actually serious.. Kaede..?"

"Wh- huh?" Kaede and Shuichi looked with worry at the person who spoke, yet wasn't looking at her. "I mean... are you seriously accusing Rantaro, the man whose dead body is TWO. METERS. away from you... of being the possible mastermind..? Just stop.. the both of you." Ranmaru said with a murderous glare, pointing daggers at the pair, who were sweating as he glared. Kaede didn't dare utter a word with him staring at her.

"I don't know.. but if Rantaro was in the library before the time limit ended...there's a high chance the mastermind planned this. And if he's dead..." Shuichi deducted nervously. Suddenly, he was interrupted by a ringing noise, as the monitor in the library suddenly lit up and showed Monokuma sitting in front of a luxurious spread of food while sitting in a luxurious chair.

"A body has been discovered!! Everyone, please gather in the library!" He cheered, before the TV turned off and Monokuma was now bouncing with excitement as he stood with the group, and the Monokubs watching nearby as they stood on the small shelf next to Rantaro's body.

"Oh, what a relief!! A murder took place just before the timer ran out!" Monokuma celebrated as all the students looked to him. "I gotta admit, I was a little nervous there since the killing game hadn't started yet. You kids sure know how to keep me in suspense!"

"H- how... the mastermind controlling you is...." kaede murmered

"Hm? By mastermind, do you mean the real mastermind controlling me?" Monokuma asked. He then realised what she was insinuating and burst out in laughing.

"Aahh!! What an imagination, thinking Rantaro was controlling me!! Of course that's wrong! If the mastermind had died, the killing game would be over!!"