Danganronpa: Frozen Mayhem

4-4: Deadly Life (Investigation)

The rest of the body discovery announcement was drowned out by the primal scream that erupted from Misaki, in great heaving breaths.

Seishiro was stunned into silence, bile rising at the back of his throat.

Etsuko and Katsuo emerged from either side of the fallen bookshelves, gawking at the scene that just unfolded.

Komi scrambled away as blood began to seep toward her, from underneath the bookshelf.

Seeing it as too distasteful - or even too traumatic - to ask who exactly had died, Etsuko shakily took out her ElectroID.

"...Genda-kun?" The comedian's face was visibly frightened.

Seishiro could only nod. Misaki sounded like she was hyperventilating and crying at the same time - he couldn't bear to look at her.

Wait. Where was Katsumi?

One body discovery announcement. That was good, at least.

"K-Kawaguchi-chan?!" Seishiro called out. Looking up, he realised the four very tall bookshelves in the middle of the very tall library had fallen over like dominoes, and now lay tipped over chaotically.

Now that Misaki had stopped being so loud, another voice could be heard.

"H-help," came the muffled voice of Katsumi. "Can't see..."

It was coming from...the ground?! No, one of the fallen shelves!

Etsuko was suddenly spurred to action, kneeling next to the gap between the shelf and the floor, obscured by books. "Kawaguchi-chan, are you in there? See if you can move around!"

Seishiro leant down in time to see some of the books shift.

"What are you doing," shouted Etsuko. "Help her!"

Misaki stumbled over, a bit like a zombie, before falling to the floor.

"Hey! Oshima!" Etsuko pointed at Katsuo. "You're not hurt! Get in here!"

This seemed to awaken something in him, as he snapped to attention. "There is an investigation to be done, but very well."

Crawling into the small gap between the fallen bookshelf and the floor, they worked to remove several volumes, before the composer's mop of blue hair was visible in the confines. Katsumi wriggled out of the space, breathing heavily. It looked like she had been crying. "Wh...what was that?"

From behind them, a heaving sob wracked Misaki's body.

Etsuko was caught between explaining the situation, and comforting the makeup artist. Meanwhile, Yuji and Takehiko, the only two who hadn't been in the library, made their entrance. Scanning over everybody else, and the growing bloodstain on the carpet, it was obvious who had died.

"Wha...this is sick, I'm gonna be-!" Yuji immediately rushed out, hand over his mouth, clearly to empty the contents of his stomach.

Takehiko's mask failed to hide his uncharacteristic shock. "Genda...the bookshelf...?"

"Hup hup hup," came Monokuma's screechy, mood-killing voice. "While I give my kudos to this particular culprit for pulling off an execution-worthy stunt, we aren't going to get much of a trial if you all stand there and wallow in your sentimental bullcrap! C'mon, kick your asses into gear!"

Panicking, Seishiro scanned the area. Misaki was completely broken, a mess of tears. Katsumi had undoubtedly just had a bunch of heavy volumes fall on her, and being trapped in a dark, tiny space clearly hadn't done wonders for her nervous disposition. Komi, too, was shellshocked - after all, Keiji had died saving her. What could be a greater emotional burden? Etsuko was already beginning to run herself haggard in an attempt to keep all three of them sane.