Part 102: Super High-school Level Update #92

T...That's...!!



It's terrible..! He turned it into a steel ball...!



All in a day's work! Ah, that made me hungry. I think I'll go get me some ramen!
Ramen is the best working-class meal, isn't it?! By the way, I'm a connoisseur of salt ramen!



I mean, tonkotsu ramen and miso ramen are for fools. The color, the smell, the volume - they're all wrong!!

Monobear has it all wrong, by the way. It's tonkotsu ramen all the way. Saying anything else is sacrilege.



Ahahahaha!!





I know it's dangerous...
But I insist. I must do it.
It's true, I'm scared. but it's alright.
I don't really understand it myself.
When I think about helping everyone, I feel brave!
You probably think this is nonsense coming from an artificial intelligence, but it's true!
So... it's alright.
For everybody's sake, I won't get scared!!



Alter Ego's words reverberated deep inside my heart and turned into anger...
A black, bubbling anger that soon formed into words...

Words that found their way out of my throat!

H...How dare you...?! You killed our friend...!!
How could you...!!



Oh? A laptop was your friend? Did it hurt? Having a ball as a friend would hurt even more, don't you think?
...Shut up!!
It wasn't just a laptop... Alter Ego was a real friend...
...And you killed him!!



Are you talking about those crazy people who believe all object have souls? I think it's called animism or something?
Oh, well. It doesn't really matter...



Anyway, it was a nuisance. It tried to discover more than it should have...



So you did notice it, after all.



Oh, no. I knew about it from the very beginning!
I knew that Fujisaki-kun did something to that computer, and that you were using it to decrypt the data...



You can't hide anything from my watchful eye!
Eh...?



You knew, and yet you let us think you had no clue...!



In a manner of speaking, the data in that computer was a present from me to you bastards.



I put it under strong encryption so that it would feel more like a reward when you finally get to it!
That's why it wasn't a problem for me that you found it.



But things changed when you went peeking into the network! I had no choice but to dispose of that thing!!



I want to do more for everyone...
I want to work with everyone so you can escape this place!



Alter Ego wanted to fight along with us...
He knew it was a dangerous fight...

And... it ended up costing him his life...



Upupu, thanks to that punishment time, I feel a lot better!



Watching a meaningless death sure feels good! It makes you realize things can always get worse!
You're wrong... It wasn't a meaningless death...
Everyone's deaths... All of our friends' deaths...
...They just make us stronger!!
You'll learn that lesson one day! I promise you that!!



Whoa, that's real anger you have there. Scary, scary.



Well, it's finally time to go our separate ways... But before that...!
It'd like to read you the rest!



The rest...?



Oogami-san's suicide letter is not over yet.



Eh...?



Upupu, it seems I have your attention. Well, let me read it to you...



And once again, my beautiful narration voice makes its appearance!!



"...Asahina. Finally, there is something I want to tell all of you."
"I believe it is a lead to solving this school's mystery."

Eh...? A lead...?





As the mole, I often had contact with the mastermind. Thanks to that, I came to understand a certain truth.
That truth is...

The mastermind did "something" to our bodies.

That "something" is, in all likelihood...



Oops, that was dangerous!! I almost read too much and gave away a spoiler!!



In other words, this meeting of the book reading club is now over!!



Huh!? Just like that, in the middle of things!?



...It really is interesting, isn't it? Aren't you just mad with dissatisfaction?



That's exacly what I'm after, you fools! That's what you get after that silly camaraderie you pulled off!



So... can I at least have Sakura-chan's letter...?



...Of course not!



B...But...



Heh heh heh... how unfortunate for you!



...Huh? What's that right here?



What is it now...?



I didn't notice this last bit in the letter before...



Finally, there is something I want to tell the mastermind...
I will not simply walk to my death without taking action.

I have already fired the first shot that will lead to your downfall.



...What is this? Was she just unwilling to admit her own defeat?

Taking action? The first shot?



...Oh, well. She's already dead, so there's nothing we can do about it.



Right, then. I'll be taking my leave now...
I suggest you bastards get a good night of sleep...
...And that you rethink how you're going to spend the rest of your school life.
Are you really okay with staying here without graduating...? Are you willing to cut all connections with the outside world...?



Upupu... Think about it...



Leaving those words behind, Monobear disappeared.

But... what the heck did she mean...?
Oogami's final words... the lead to solving the school's mystery...



The mastermind... did "something" to our bodies...?

Kirigiri-san said something similar before...
It was when Celes-san's trial was over.



What... did you do...?
What did you do to my body?
...Eh!?
Just answer... What did you do to my body?





The matermind... did something... to our bodies...
What did he do...?

Did he implant something in there...?



For example...
Maybe he implanted small bombs inside everyone's bodies...

And than, when we try to leave this school, the sensors attached to the bombs will go off...
...making them explode!

I've seen situations like that in movies and in manga. It's not impossible...!



No...! Imagining what it means is the worst thing I can do!

I should just let it go for now...!





...Anyway, the trial is over and Monobear is gone...



So what are we supposed to do now?



For the time being, there's nothing left to do but go up and return to the school.



Yeah! Let's go back!



B...But...
Um, I...
............

Asahina-san... As expected, she feels responsible...



How foolish. I wish you'd cease the self-pity act.
A mystery someone as incompetent as you came up with wasn't such a big deal.



There is no way it had a chance of killing someone like me...



Well said... Though we have Kirigiri-chi and Naegi-chi to thank for that...



Shut up.



............
I'm... really sorry...



How many times are you going to apologize? Let that be the last time.
I am not in enough distress that I need to hear your endless apologies...



Y...yeah... I got it...
S...So...



We can move on, can't we...?



Huh...?
What was that just now...?
That sounded suspiciously like a relationship flag being set!

In Japanese gaming terminology, setting (or raising) a flag means making any significant choice in a video game. It is most commonly used in dating games, where making a dialogue choice that results in the game advancing towards romance (and/or awkward porn scene) with a specific character is called setting that character's flag.





I won't have it!
I can't have any person exist who stands in the way of my and Byakuya-sama's eternal love!



W...What are you saying!? There's no way I'd...!!
Who'd even want to... with those ugly glasses of his...|!



Ugly... glasses...?



They're ugly, so I can call them ugly if I want to!



You really are looking for someone to get rid of you, aren't you?



Back to your nasty ways, I see. You don't have any friends, do you.



Wait! This lovey-dovey quarrel is making me jealous!! I wanna have an insult battle with Byakuya-sama too!



I guess there was no way we could all just turn into best friends on a moment's notice...

Well, that's life.



Following Oogami-san's trial, we returned to Hope's Peak Academy...

But the story was not yet over.

A few hours passed...
I went back to my room. Soon, night fell.



*ding-dong-ding-dong*







Eh... this is a school announcement. It is now 10pm.
“Night Time” begins now.
The cafeteria’s doors will be locked shortly. You are forbidden to enter it.



Night Time arrived, and I got into bed...

...and fell into deep sleep.
But... that's also not where the story ends...



A voice...
I can hear... a voice...



"Wa.."
"..ke up..."

"............"

"Wake up..."

...Eh?

With my consciousness still hazy, I opened my heavy eyelids...





Kirigiri-san...?
...That's right.
Um...? Kirigiri-san...?
I told you, that's right.
I see. Kirigiri-san.
...Eh?!! What?!!



Without thinking, I leaped out of the bed.

W...What are you doing here?!



I came to wake you up.
W...Wake me up...
...How did you even get in here!?
You were careless. You left the door unlocked.
I did?! No way!



You did. Don't act so surprised.
What time is it...?



It's three o'clock. Before dawn, of course.

3am...?!

Why is Kirigiri-san waking me up at this time...?



The only way to find out is to ask her.



W...Why are you here at this hour...?



I have... a small request from you.

request

What do you want...?



...Do you remember Oogami-san's final words in her letter?
"I will not simply walk to my death without taking action. I have already fired the first shot that will lead to your downfall."
I want to confirm what those words mean.
Confirm...? How...?

Kirigiri-san moved her head next to my ear...





The data processing room on the fourth floor...
...Eh?
I'm going up ahead.



Saying nothing more, she quickly stepped out of my room.

Huh...?

I repeated her words, my mind still half asleep.

The data processing room on the forth floor...?

But, that room was locked... I'm sure of that...



I hope I'm not going to regret this.



I walked through the dark school corridors, and arrived at the door to the data processing room.

But, when I got there...



Kirigiri-san... isn't here.
That's strange... She said she was going up ahead...
Did she go inside already...?

I raised my hand to the door and tried to open it...

* rattle rattle *

...But couldn't.
I tried several times, but...

* rattle rattle *

So it's locked, as before...

In that case, what happened to Kirigiri-san?

She said I should come here...



Hey, hey! What are you doing!?
Ah...!





It's forbidden to break down locked doors!
I wasn't...



Are you going to say you weren't trying to break it? But, you see...



What else could you have been doing?! I can tell just by looking!



I just came here to warn you. It seems to me you may have forgotten the rules.
Don't tell me... you're walking in your sleep...?
I'm not...



...Anyway, It's 3 o'clock! It's the middle of the night! Even I need my sleep!
Go to bed and stop doing weird things!!



"...What's going on here?"





Is something wrong...?
K...Kirigiri-san...!?



Y...You're here too...?!



Just go back to bed, you two! It's been a long day! We had a trial!!



...You're right. We understand.
Let's go back, Naegi-kun.
Eh...?



...Do you have a problem hearing? Let's go back.
I really have no idea what's going on...



Just forget it. Let's go.
S...Sure...



That's right! Go home!



We turned away from the data processing room, and went back to the dormitory.





And then...



...Good night, Naegi-kun.
W...Wait just a second!



............
What the hell was that all about...?

She wakes me up in the middle of the night... Tells me to go to a locked room...
And then, she herself shows up late... and we just leave without even investigating the place...

What is she thinking...?



...It's nothing.

As usual, she doesn't say a word. I'm used to it by now, but...



Well, then. Goodnight.
S...Sure...

But then, as we started walking back to our rooms...

When Kirigiri-san walked pass me...





Mukuro Ikusaba...
Eh...?

Kirigiri-san whispered those words straight into my ear.

Mukuro Ikusaba...
The sixteenth student in this academy...
The girl they call "Super High-school Level Despair"...



Beware Mukuro Ikusaba...

Mukuro Ikusaba (戦刃むくろ) has an interesting last name, composed of kanji meaning "war" and "blade". Her first name sounds pretty menacing as well (at least to my non-native ears). It's written in hiragana (one of Japanese's phonetic scripts), but one possible interpretation is the word "mukuro" (骸), meaning "corpse".



CHAPTER 4: END



Students still alive: 06



Students still alive: 07?